IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


II  I.I 
11.25 


^  Uii   12.2 


us 


Lo    12.0 


1.4 


Hiotographic 

Sciences 

CorporatiQn 


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23  WEST  MAIN  STRUT 

WitSTER,N.Y.  USSO 

(716)I72-4S03 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHIVI/iCIVIH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  da  microraproductions  historiquas 


Tachnieal  and  Bibliographle  Not«a/Not«s  taehniquM  at  bibliographiquaa 


Th 
to 


Tha  Inatituta  haa  attamptad  to  obtain  tha  baat 
original  copy  availabia  for  filming.  Faaturaa  of  thia 
copy  which  may  ba  bibliographically  unlciua. 
which  may  ahar  any  of  tha  imagaa  in  tha 
raproduction,  or  which  may  aigniflcantly  changa 
tha  uaual  mathod  of  filming,  ara  ohaokad  below. 


□   Colourad  covara/ 
Couvartura  da  coulaur 


pn  Covara  damagad/ 


D 


D 
D 


D 


Couvartura  andommag^a 

Covara  raatorad  and/or  laminatad/ 
Couvartura  raataur4a  at/ou  pallicul4a 


r~1   Covar  titia  miaaing/ 


La  titra  da  couvartura  manqua 


r~n   Colourad  mapa/ 


Cartaa  gtegraphiquaa  an  coulaur 


□   Colourad  ink  (i.a.  othar  than  blua  or  black)/ 
Encra  da  coulaur  (i.a.  autra  qua  blaua  ou  noira) 

pn   Colourad  plataa  and/or  illuatrationa/ 


D 


Planchaa  at/ou  illuatrationa  an  coulaur 


Bound  with  othar  matarial/ 
Ralii  avac  d'autraa  documanta 


Tight  binding  may  cauaa  ahadowa  or  diatortion 
along  intarior  margin/ 

Laroiiura  sarrAa  paut  cauaar  da  I'ombra  ou  da  la 
diatoraion  la  long  da  la  marga  IntAriauro 

Blank  laavaa  addad  during  raatoration  may 
appaar  within  tha  taxt.  Whanavar  poaaibla.  thaaa 
liava  baan  omittad  from  filming/ 
II  aa  paut  qua  cartainaa  pagaa  blanchaa  ajoutiaa 
lora  d'una  raatauration  apparaiaaant  dana  la  taxta, 
maia,  loraqua  cala  4tait  poaaibla,  caa  pagaa  n'ont 
paa  it*  filmiaa. 

Additional  commanta:/ 
Commantairaa  suppiimantairaa: 


L'Inatitut  a  microfilm*  la  maillaur  axampiaira 
qu'il  lui  a  it*  poaaibla  da  aa  procurer.  Laa  d*tailt 
da  cat  axampiaira  qui  aont  paut-*tra  uniquaa  du 
point  da  vua  bibliographiqua.  qui  pauvant  modifier 
una  imaga  raproduita,  ou  qui  pauvent  axiger  una 
modification  dana  la  m*thoda  normaia  da  f iimaga 
aont  indiqu*a  ci'daaaoua. 


D 


D 


Colourad  pagaa/ 
Pagaa  da  coulaur 


|~n   Pagaa  damagad/ 


Pagas  andommag*a8 

Pagaa  raatorad  and/oi 

Pagaa  raataur*aa  at/ou  pallicul*e8 

Pagaa  diacoiourad,  atainad  or  foxai 
Pagaa  d*coior*e8,  tachet*e8  ou  piqu*et 

Pagaa  detached/ 
Pagaa  d*tach*ea 

Showthrough> 
Tranaparanca 

Quality  of  prin 

Qualit*  in*gala  da  I'impreaaion 

Includaa  aupplamantary  matarii 
Comprand  du  mat*rial  auppi*mentaira 

Only  adition  availabia/ 
Saula  *dition  diaponibia 


r~n  Pagaa  raatorad  and/or  laminated/ 

ryy  Pagaa  diacoiourad,  atainad  or  foxed/ 

rn  Pagaa  detached/ 

r~n  Showthrough/ 

I     I  Quality  of  print  variaa/ 

r~1  Includaa  aupplamantary  matarial/ 

rn  Only  adition  availabia/ 


Th 
po 
of 
fill 


Or 
ba 
thi 
aio 
oti 
fin 
aio 
or 


Th 
ahi 
TH 
wt 

Ml 
dif 
an 
bai 
rig 
rac 
mc 


Pagaa  wholly  or  partially  obacurad  by  errata 
alipa.  tiaauaa,  etc.,  have  baan  rafilmed  to 
enaura  tha  beat  poaaibla  image/ 
Lea  pagaa  totalament  ou  partieilement 
obacurciaa  par  un  fauillat  d'errata.  una  pelure, 
etc..  ont  *t*  fiim*ea  *  nouveau  da  fapon  * 
obtanir  la  maillaura  imaga  poaaibla. 


Thia  item  ia  filmed  at  tha  raduction  ratio  chackad  balow/ 

Ca  document  eat  film*  au  taux  da  r*duction  indiqu*  ci-daaaoua. 

10X  14X  18X  22X 


2SX 


30X 


c 

• 

y 

■■■HI 

t^^H 

,^■■■1 

12X 


16X 


aox 


a4x 


28X 


32X 


The  copy  filmed  hunt  Iim  b««n  raproducad  thanks 
to  the  gonorotlty  of: 

National  Library  of  Canada 


L'axamplaira  f ilm4  fut  raproduit  grica  i  la 
gAnAroaM  da: 

BIbliothAqua  nationala  du  Canada 


Tha  Imagas  appearing  hara  ara  tha  bast  quality 
possibia  oonsldaring  tha  condition  and  legibility 
of  tha  original  copy  and  in  kaaping  with  tha 
filming  contract  spaclflcations. 


Original  copies  in  printed  peper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  Impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  lliuatrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  lest  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  Impression. 


Lf»  Imsges  suhrantea  ont  4t4  reproduites  avac  la 
plus  grand  soin.  compta  tenu  de  le  condition  et 
de  la  nettet*  de  rexemplaire  fiimA,  et  en 
conformity  avac  las  conditions  du  contrat  de 
fllmage. 

Lea  exemplaires  orlginaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimAe  sont  fllmis  en  commenpant 
par  le  premier  plet  et  en  terminant  solt  par  la 
darnlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  emprelnte 
d'Impression  ou  d'illustratlon,  solt  par  la  second 
plat,  salon  la  cas.  Toua  las  autres  exemploires 
orlginaux  aont  f  llmto  en  commengant  par  la 
premMre  page  qui  comporte  une  emprelnte 
d'Impression  ou  d'lllustretlon  et  en  terminant  par 
la  darnlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
emprelnte. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shell  contein  the  symbol  -^  (meening  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  ▼  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  epplles. 


Un  dee  symboles  suivants  apparattra  sur  la 
dernMre  Image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  ie 
cas:  le  symbols  — ►  signifie  "A  SUIVRE".  le 
symbols  ▼  signifie  "FIN". 


Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  ere  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diegrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Lea  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  Atre 
fllmte  A  dee  taux  de  reduction  diff Arents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  Atre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clichA,  II  est  fllmA  A  partir 
de  Tangle  supArieur  gauche,  de  gauclM  A  drolte. 
et  de  haut  en  bes,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'Images  nAcessaire.  Las  diagrammes  suivants 
lllustrent  la  mAthode. 


1  2  3 


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2 

3 

4 

5 

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MdMiUltoMkAiU^hUI 


Entered  eeeording  to  the  Aet  of  Concreu  tn  the  year  1800^  hj 

DAVID  BURNS, 

la  the  CSeih'i  Office  of  the  Diitrlet  Court  of  the  United  States,  for  the 

Korthem  Diitriet  of  Ohio. 


*■■ 


• 


/■■*i 


PREFACE. 


rthc 


• 


The  following  brief  narrative  of  tlie  unparalleled  ad- 
ventures of  Matthew  Brayton  is  compiled  for  the  sat- 
isfaction of  those  who  wished  to  preserve  a  m^orial  of 
his  romantic  history. 

Extraordinary  as  the  incidents  may  appear,  there  is 
abundant  proof  of  their  entire  truth.  Living  witnesses 
bear  testimony  to  the  circumstances  of  the  mysterious 
loss  of  the  hero,  and  his  identity  is  established  by  incon- 
trovertible proofs.  Numerous  circumstances  also  confirm 
the  account  given  by  him  of  his  adventures  during  the 
thbrty-four  years  spent  among  the  Indians. 


1? 


w- 


Mw^ANMMW 


THE  INDIAN  tIAPl'IVB. 


• 


■  »* 


CHAPTER  I. 

THB    LOST   CHILD. 

That  portion  of  North-western  Ohio,  ■itosted  to 
the  Sont'h-east  of  the  Black  Swamp,  was  but  sparse-* 
]y  settled  at  the  close  of  the  first  qaarter  of  the 
present  century.  The  hardy  pioneers  who Jiaid  left 
their  New  England  homes  to  open  iip  the  western 
wilds,  here  and  there  bnilt  their  modest  dwellings 
and  tilled  the  few  acres  won  from  the  dense  forest 
and  Inxnriant  prairie.  The  dusky  aborigin^Mf  driv- 
en from  all  other  parts  of  Ohio,  clung  t«|piouiy 
to  this  comptfratiyely  neglected  spot,  and  ^e  smoke 
from  the  log  hut  of  1  e  settler  rose  within  sight  of 
the  Indian  wigwam.  Tae  two  races  were  at  peace 
with  each  other,  for  neither  cared  to  convert  a  )pa8- 
Bive  neighbor  into  an  active  enemy.  The  In^ans 
had  realised  tiieir  inability  to  drive  back  the  eon* 
stantly  advancing  wave  of  civilization,  and  the  white 
settlers  had  no  desire  to  provoke  the  savage  retalia- 
tions of  their  dusky  neighbors  unless  compelled  by 
necessity  to  do  so.  ^ 

In  the  neighborhood  of  the  junction  between  the 
Sandusky  and  Tymochte  riven,  in  Wyandot  eoimlyt 
6a 


MaUTiew  Braylon, 


S-]  .f^-  . 


a  reniDant  of  the  once  powerfal  Wyandot  tribe  Rtill 
remained.     One  of  their  villages  was  at  Upper  San- 
dusky, and  another  at  Springville,  in  Seneca  coun- 
ty.   A  small  band  of  Senecas  were  also  located  Id 
the  jjieigtrborhood^  apd  some  scattered  Ottawas  had 
theil^  wigiramd  on  Blancbard*s  Fork,  a  few  miles  to 
the  west  of  the  Wyandot  settlen^|ts.     An  Indian 
trail  led  from  Uppet^andusky^Bpringville,  and 
thence,  through  the  BlaoR  Swar^^to  Ferrysbnrgh. 
At  the  latter  plaee  it  crossed  the  Maumee,  and 
reached  the  sbor«ijC»f  tht  Detroit  river  opposite  Mai- 
den, in  Canada.     Some  of  tjNe  Indians  living  in  the 
North-west  of  Ohio  had  sided  with  the  British  In 
the  war'  of  1 1 8  i  2,  amd  these  annually  erossed  over  to 
Mfdtden  to  receive  :their;  presents  of  gnus,  ammuni- 
tion  und  bliMiJketf;     The  Canadian  Indians  some- 
timea  visited  thdr  dusli^  brethren  in  Ohio,  and  thus 
the  trittl  was  frequently  travierse^^      t 
I  ;;Amotfg  .the  settlers  who  had  located ,  tbem- 
i^ves  iu'  the  ndghboihood  of  <^  Wyandot  villages 
:>iinB:  Bmjab  BjMi¥TOv,  a  <  l^cifty  farmer .  from  New 
Bngland,  who  hiul  established  himself  near  the 
Tymochte  river  in  what  is  no^  Crawford  township, 
:  Wyandot  county^  •  In  the  year  18^5,  Mr.  Br^yton 
w»s  thirtv^niae  yearn  of  age*  and  his  family  con- 
sisted of  his  wife  and  their  six  ehildren^  Wh^liam* 
Habubt,  liuer,  Mi^TTHisw,  ^rt  and  Purxit.    In 
]:  >  that  year  Mr;  Brayik>n  was  bu6y  ereeting  a  mill  on 
'   this  Tjmochte^  aAd  towards  the  Fall  of  the  year  he 
-^     went  to  Gbillieotbe  for  the  purpose  of  bringing  up 
tbe  miU-stcmes.    The  joum$^  at  that*  time  wns  long 
and  tedious,  and  the  home  affairs  were  entrusted  in 
iiis  absence  to  Mrs.  BaAvliGON  and  the  i^est  son 
-Tia^'WiiaaAM,^tlien«ladof  sijEte^.u^^  . 

On  the  20th  of  September,  1825,  William  BsAT- 
VON,  with  his  younger  brother  Matthbw,  then  neai- 


'/ 


TAe  Tndiatt  Vaplice. 


ly  seven  and  a  half  years  old.  started  oat  to  hunt 
op  some  stray  cattle.  They  proceeded  for  two  or 
threid  niiles  in  the  direction  of  the  spot  where  Wil*- 
LiAM  Bratton  at  preMrtt  lites,  bat  fomid  no  traoei 
of  the  missing  cattle.  Here  they  met  a  neighbor 
name^  Haet,  who  was  also  looking  for  stray  cattle*. 
Matthew  had  become  tired,  and  declared  his  ina* 
biMty  to  proceed  any  faither.  After  a  short  consvl^ 
tation  it  was  agreed  that  William  Bbatton  and 
Hart  should  pBceed  in  search  of  the  cattle,  and 
that  MATTHEw^hoold  take  the  path  which  led  t0 
the  house  of  Mr.  Bakee,  abottt  sixty  rods  distant^ 
where  he  could  amuse  himself  with  his  yonng  play- 
mates until  the  retom  of  William.  The  two  set 
out  an  tlieir  cattle  hunting  expedition,  leaving  little 
Matthew  to  pursue  his  way  along  the  narrow  and 
ill-deined  path. 

At  the  close  of  the  day's  search;  William  Beat- 
ton  Called  at  Mr.  Bakxe'b  house  for  hi|B  little 
brother.  To  his  astonishment  he  learned  that  Mat- 
thew had  not  been  seen  by  anv  of  the  fhmily.  He 
then  turned  his  stetis  homeward,  thinking  tliat  Mat- 
thew had  changed  his  mind  and  gone  home,  but  on 
arriving  there  tio  tidings  of  the  missing  boy  met 
him.  The  alarm  and  apprehension  that  ilkd  the 
breast  of  the  mother  may  be  conceived.  A  thousand 
fearful  thoughts  flitted  tlirougfa  her  mind  in  rapid 
siiccession.  But  no  time  was  lost  in  useless  «rlev^ 
ing.  The  men  and  women  who  biiaved 
of  frontier  life  were  quick  to  think  and 
act  A  little  party  tunied  out  at  once  t<>^iMK5k  i# 
the  missiug  boy  and  restc»re  him,  if  posidblei  to^t^e 
anxious  household.  From  the  spot  where  the  broth* 
ers  had  parted,  the  path  to  Mr.  Bakee'b  houis  was 
narrowly  searched,  and  the  marks  of  tiie  cMd'«fe6t 
were  clearly  discernible.    At  no  great  distance  firoil 


^r 


XI '■,-.«> 


.W^^ 


8  MHatihew  Braytort, 

'the  eommmieemeDt  of  the  path  it  was  ioteneeted  hy 
a  track  made  bj  some  logs  recently  drawn  from  the 
woods.  At  this  point  the  traces  showed  that  Mat- 
thew bad  stopped  in  donbt.  They  also  showed 
that  he  had  finally  taken  the  log  track  in  mistake 
for  tlio  regular  path.  Up  that  track  his  little  foot- 
st^s  were  traced  for  some  distance,  but,  after  awhile, 
they  became  fainter,  and  at  last  4Rppeared  alto- 
gether. The  woods  on  the  mar^n  of  the  track 
were  searched  in  vain  for  traces  of  his  feet. 

The  Indian  trail,  before  spoken  of,  crossed  the 
log  track  near  where  the  footsteps  became  inyisible* , 
and  it  was  possible  that  he  had  taken  that  trail*,  but 
his  footmarKS— if  he  had  really  followed  that  path, — 
had  been  obliterated  by  the  feet  of  passing  Indians. 

The  party  sorrowfully  returned  from  their  unsuc- 
cessful search,  and  met  the  anxious  mother  with 
heavy  hearts.  The  night  that  followed  wms  one  of 
sleepless  agony^  to  Mrs.  Bratton.  To  what  suffer- 
ing* or  dreadful  fate  her  little  boy  might  be  subject- 
ed, it  was  impossible  to  conjecture*  but  the  dark 
night  and  the  lonely  woods  were  fraught  with  dangers 
to  him  and  with  terror  to  her.  The  absence  of  the 
Cither  at  this  critical  juncture  on  so  long  and  distant 
^  journey,  aggravated  the  troubles  and  distress  of 
ijoifi  time. 

If  oming  broke  at  last,  and  never  was  daylight 
more  eagerly  welcomed.  Witl»  the  first  dawn  of  light, 
messengers  set  out  in  all  directiops  for  assi3taoce, 
jsnd  soon  the  woods  were  astir  with  searchli^g  partie^ 
The  Indian  villages  were  examined,  but  t&  Wj/Sfi^ 
dots  professed  entire  ignorance  as  to  the  movemeati 
of  the  missing  boy,  and  joined  with  much  seal  in 
the  search.  The  relations  between  the  BlUTVaMa 
md  the  Wyandots  had  been  of  Uie  most  frii^y 
character,  and  there  seemed  to  be  nq  pos^bfo  reason 


Vi 


d  the 
sible, . 
I;  but 
th,-     V, 
lians. 


Th§  Indian  OapHiM.  i 

for  their  Interfering  with  the  peace  of  that  family. 
They  stated,  however,  that  a  partv  of  Canadita 
Indians  had  passed  np  the  trail  on  tne  day  that  the 
boy  disappeared,  bnt  could  not  say  whether  he  had 
been  carried  off  by  that  party  or  not.  Another 
night  came,  and  again  the  sorrowful  mother  met  the 
dejected  hunters  at  her  door  and  received  no  conso- 
lation. At  ^break  the  parties  again  sei  out  to 
search  new  tncts  of  country,  but  all  without  a? ail. 
Mr.  Bows,  who  yet  lives  in  the  neighborhood,  acted 
as  storekeeper  of  the  party,  and  filled  the  bags  of 
the  searchers  with  meal  as  tbej«retnmed  from  their 
long  expeditions.  The  settlers  for  many  miles  around 
turned  out  in  the  exciting  hunt.  Days  lengthened 
into  weeks,  and  then  it  l^came  evident  that  all  far- 
ther search  was  useless.  Every  foot  of  territorj^for 
miles  around  had  been  examined,  and  no  trace  of 
the  lost  child  <2puld  be  discovered.  He  could  scarce'* 
ly  have  wandered  off  and  perished  by  starvation  or 
wild  beasts,  for  in  either  case  some  trace  would  have 
been  left.  The  only  inference  remaining  was  that 
he  had  been  snatched  up  l>y  the  party  of  Canadian 
Indians  and  carried  off  into  hopeless  slavery,  if  not 
to  meet  a  horrible  death.  Pursuit  now  was  useless, 
had  the  boy  been  thus  carried  off,  and  the  search 
was  reluctantly  abandoned. 

Meantime  Mr.  Bkatton  had  returned  from  hia 
Journey,  and  the  sad  affliction  that  had  befallen  his 
house,  fell  with  crushing  weight  on  his  heart.  For 
the  sake  of  his  wife  and  remaining  children  he  bor# 
up  nobly,  but  his  distress  was  keen,  and  evenr  stmw 
of  hope  that  floated  by  was  eagerly  clutched  at. 
From  time  to  time  came  vague  rumors  of  tlMd  boy 
having  b^en  seen  in  different  directions,  wild  the 
fah^t  hope  of  success  sufficed  to  send  off  ilia  hw* 
rd||d  flitner  or  some  trusty  messenger  to  fol 


10 


JUaUhew  Brauforit . 


tl^e  qloQj  bat  always  vdtl^oiit  saccess.  The  last 
ioforijiiatipii  that  a88Qme4  the  appearance  of  proba- 
bility was  received  in  1 829,  frbm  a  man  who  htul 
been  traveling  among  the  Indian  tribes  bf  Illinofs, 
and  who  asserted  that  he  had  sieen  among  the  Iii- 
dians  of  that  country  a  white  child  who6e  age  and 
appearance  corresponded  generally  with  that  of  thel 
missing  Matthew  BiiAYTbN.  Without  an  honr'ii 
delay  Mr.  Bbatton  Wrote  to  Gen«|al  Cass,  then 
Indian  Commissioner,  but  his  answer  crushed  but 
the  last  remnant  of  hope.  The  letter  bade  the 
anxious  father  to  renotiiice  all  hope  based  on  such  a 
rumor,  for  there  was  no  such  white  child  among  the 
Indians  of  IlUnois.  On  what  authority  the  General 
based  his  assertion,  cannot  be  said,  but  it  is  more 
than  probable  that  in  this  he  was  mistaken.  ''"''^ 

The  weary  years  passed  on  but  brought  no  com- 
fort to  the  stricken  household.  As  all  strong  im- 
pressions fade  in  the  course  of  time,  so  faded  away 
the  memory  of  the  loss  from  the  minds  of  men. 
But  deep  in  the  hearts  bf  the  parents  remained  the 
image  of  the  lost  boy,  and  the  thrilling  scenes  and 
emotions  coi^nected  with  the  search  of  him  recurred 
again  and  again  long  after  others  had  nearly  forgot^ 
ten  the  inci^ents^  The  father  never  forgot  him. 
His  "lost  Matthsw''  was  ever  in  his  heart,  and  his 
nfune  was  often  on  his  tongue.  The  eldest  brothef, 
WiLUAM,  could  not  forget  him,  for  the  mother's 
reproaches,  silent  or  spoken,  for  Ms  neglect  in  send- 
ing so  young  a  boy  alone  on  such  a  path,  sank  deep 
into  his  heart.  And  could  the  mother  that  bore  him 
forget  the  missing  iamb  of  the  fold?  The  paling 
cheek,  the  wasting  tbrm,  the  decaying  strength  told 
hf>wdeep  the  love,  how  bitter  the  angi^sh  of  the 
pother  for  her  lost  son.  If  she  were  l)ut  sure  of 
his  iate,<^|^^t  one  rag  of  his  clothes,  bitt  a  parti- 


\\ 


The  Indian  Captive. 


11 


cle  of  his  body,  had  remained  to  assure  her  that  her 

.^darling  had  perished  by  wild  beasts,  or  been  slain 

by  still  wilder  men,  it  would  at  least  have  given  rest 

to  her  weary  heart ;  but  this  tortarlng  mystery  was 

.too  great  to  b^  borne.    So  thi^ years  dragged  slowly 

.onward,  and  each  sncceeding  anniversary  of  her 

j.l^oy'^  loss  drove  die  sharp  grief  still  deeper  into  her 

hearti  until,  sixteen  yeajrs  after  the  loss,  she  tired  of 

this  world,  and  the  peaceful  turf  closed  over  her 

sorrows. .  In  her  last  thoughts  the  memory  of  the 

ilpst  boy  had  a  plac^.    She  died  of  a  broken  heart. 

;    |if A^HEW  Brayion  wa£(,born  April  7th,  1818,  ^nd 

\  was  therefore  seven  year^,  five  months  and  thirteen 

days  old  lEit  the  time  of  his  loss. 


^    tlfiitTBE  11. 

BIAirrHl!tV  BBA.TT0N'S  KABBAllYE.' 

Stolen  by  Indians  and  Traded  from   iSribe  to 

'..,.  Tribe' — Siouxs-^Siotix  Dog  Danoe-^Soldto  (he 

Snakee- — Digger  Indians^^FigM  iviffi,  Jhs  Dig' 

gere^^Utcth — Quarreh   yrUh  the  Biabhfi6t^^ 

Flat  SeadB-^Sriakes  join   UtahSf   Or  see,  and 

IHat  Eeada-'-^mn  with  Copper  Seade* 

;  The  first  sevepi  or  eight  years  of  my  captivity 

among  the  Indians  were  so  |hll  of  changes  that  I 

cannot  diistino^y  remember  the  events  that  occurred, 

and  I  am  compdlied  to  trust  to  the  accounts  given 

me  by  the  members  of  the  various  trib€»  who  were 


12 


Matthew  SraytoUt 


cognizant  of  the  circumstances.  From  their  state- 
ments I  learn  that  I  was  taken  from  Ohio  by  a  party 
of  Canadian  Indians,  and  by  them  borne  to  their 
Tillage  in  Canada.  The  only  motive  alleged  to  me 
for  the  theft  was  that  the  party  who  stole  me  had  a 
difference  with  some  white  families  in  Ohio,  and 
that  I  was  taken  ont  of  revenge.  Among  these 
Indians  I  remained  secreted  for  some  time,  the  tribe 
fearing  to  let  me  be  seen  by  white  men  lest  I  should 
be  taken  away. 

From  all  that  I  can  learn,  I  remained  some  six  or 
seven  months  with  this  tribe,  and  was  then  sold  to 
a  party  of  Pottawottomies,  who  took  me  across  to 
Michigan.  The  compensation  obtained  for  me  by 
the  Canadian  tribe,  consisted  of  three  and  a  half 
gallons  of  whiskey.  With  my  new  owners  I  re- 
mained about  half  a  year,  when  the  Pottawottomies 
either  being  afraid  to  keep  me  any  longer,  or  having 
an  unappeasable  thirst  for  whiskey,  traded  me  off 
to  the  Paw-Paws  for  five  and  a  half  gallons  of  fire- 
water. I  could  not  say  how  long  I  remained  in 
Michigan  with  this  tribe,  but  I  was  at  length  trans- 
ferred to  thOv  Winnebagoes  of  Illinois,  my  value 
having  increased  with  my  age  to  the  amount  of 
seven  and  a  half  gallons  of  whiskey.  I  did  not  re- 
main long  with  this  tribe,  but  was  sold  to  the  Wis- 
cotisin  Ohippewas  for  nine  and  a  half  gallons  of 
whiskey,  and  with  them  remained  one  year  From 
the  Chippewas  I  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Siouzs 
in  Minnesota,  aiud  remained  w|ih  them  nearly  three 
years.  Daring  my  stay  wltt  the  Siouxs  I  visited 
the  site  of  what  now  forms  the  city  of  St.  Paul.  In 
ib$,t  vicinity  there  were  then  seven  shanties  or  huts, 
made  of  poles  and  sticks  set  up  endways.  Two  or 
three  French  and.  i)atch,  with  some  Indisus  then 
occupied  the  place. 


The  Indian  CupHce. 


13 


. ) 


About  the  ninth  year  of  my  captivity  among  the 
Indians,  the  band  of  Sioaxs  to  which  I  belonged 
made  an  expedition  westward.  In  the  course  of 
their  hunt  they  came  on  a  tribe  of  Snake  Indians. 
The  Snakes  and  Siouxs  were  generally  at  war,  but 
there  was  peace  between  these  two  parties.  Some 
differences  that  had  occurred  between  the  bands 
were  settled  at  the  meeting,  and  the  Siouxs  celebra- 
ted the  fact  by  a  great  Dog-Dance. 

This  dance  is  peculiar  to  the  Siouxs,  and  I  never 
saw  it  at  any  other  time.  The  manner  of  doing  it 
was  this : — A  party  of  warriors  squat  around  in  a 
circle,  smoking  and  talking.  A  dog  is  then  taken 
and  its  legs  tied,  after  which  it  is  thrown  into  the 
circle  of  warriors.  One  of  the  ''medicine  men'' 
kills  the  animal  with  his  tomahawk,  cuts  open  its 
side  and  takes  out  its  liver,  which  is  cut  into  strips, 
and  hung  on  a  pole  nearly  the  heignt  of  a  man» 
The  warriors  spring  to  their  feet  and  commence 
dancing  around  it;  all  the  while  smacking  their 
lips  and  making  grimaces  as  if  they  were  anxiO'na 
to  have  a  taste  of  the  delicious  meat.  In  a  short 
time  one  of  the  dancers  makes  a  grab  at  the  liver 
and  bites  off  a  piece,  which  he  chews  and  swaUows 
as  he  dances.  Then  the  others  follow  his  example 
until  all  the  liver  is  eaten.  If  any  of  the  pieces 
should  drop,  the  ^'medicine  man''  picks  it  up  and 
carries  it  in  the  palm  of  his  hand  for  the  dancers  ta 
eat,  after  doing  which  they  lick  his  hand.  As  soon 
as  the  liver  is  all  eaten,  the  warriors  sit  down  aa 
before,  and  wait  to  see  if  another  dog  is  thrown  in. 
As  long  as  any  one  gives  a  dog,  they  ure  compelled 
to  eat  its  liver  raw  and  warm,  and  no  one  is  allowed 
to  handle  it  except  the  ''medicine  man.*^  Womeii 
are  forbidden  to  join  in  this  dance.  The  Siosxt 
thinly  tbftt  those  who  thus  eat  the  liver  of  the  dog* 


u 


Matthew  Brayton, 


will  possess  that  animaPs  bravery  and  sagacity. 

Before  the  meeting  was  over,  the  Snakes  took  a 
great  fancy  to  me,  and  in  order  to  celebrate  their 
new  made  trace  the  Siouxs  offered  to  trade  me  t6  the 
Snakes  for  eleven  gallons  of  whiskey,  which  was 
done,  and  I  was  once  more  transferred  to  new  mias- 
tersJ'  ■    '"'■ 

My  new  owners  made  me  change  my  dress  and 
paint  to  conform  to  thMt  stylb,  arid  I  was  adopted 
into  the  tribe.  An  Indtati  who  hieid  lost  a  son  in 
battle  took  me  into  his  family,  and  frbkn  that  timd 
forth  I  was  told  to  consider  him  as  my  father,  and 
his  sqoaw  as  my  mother.  But  although  thud  made 
one  of  themselves,  thid  Indians  did  hot  fdl  to  treat 
ma  with  consideirable  harshniess,  and  I  was  compelled 
to  do  some  of  the  severe  dradgeiry  nsaally  imposed 
on  the  women. 

The  l^nakes  at  that  time  hnnted  in  Iowa,  but  in 
aboat  a  year  after  my  joiuiug  them  they  had  repeat- 
ed quarrels  witlibther  tribes,  and  with  the  whites.'  '■ 
For  a  few  months  they  remained  in  Missouri,  btit 
eveiituall^  packed  up  aiid  struck  the' trail  for  the 
west  9ide  of  tlie  Kocky  Mountaips.  *   Our  tribe ' 
hunte4  through  Utal^  fo^f  a  While,  l:iut  oUJEirireled  with 
the  tribes  already  in  that  country,  am  therefore  we 
once  more  pushed  West,  and  crossiijiff  the  mountains 
thai  divided  us  from  California^  entered  that  coun- 
try,    flere  we  Jived,  for  about  five  years,  generally' 
at  peace,  but  having  occasional  skirmishes  with  the  ' 
Digger  Indians.  '    ''  ^'•^^^' 

^  These  Indians  aire  a  wretched  and  degenerate  race, 
co^rdl^^^ treacherous,  filthy  and  indolent.  Ihsteaa' 
of  living  by  hunting,  aB  was  th<6  case  with  bur  tribe 
and^  nearly  all  the  bthers  6ast  of  the  OaliforhB^ 
Mduntains,  4;hes^  obtained  a  seaiity  subsistence  by 
digging  (6t  roots.    The  women  do  the  dlggfug 


i-4- 


4 


Ths  Indian  Captive, 


15 


whilst  the  Lien  stay  in  the  lodges  or  are  playing  at 
some  game.  I  have  seen  hundreds  of  the  women 
at  a  time  out  in  this  employment.  They  carry  on 
their  backs  heavy  baskets  of  the  shape  of  old  fash- 
ioned straw  beehives,  and  in  their  hands  long  sticks 
with  which  to  dig  the  roots.  Early  in  the  morning 
they  go  put  andleep  at  wpr^  until  evening,  when 
they  ref;urn  with  their  baskets  full  of  roots.  Some- 
times they  procure  enough  not  only  ^or  their  present 
eating,  b,ut  to  lay  up  for  winter  use. 

The  men  among  the  I)igger  Indians  Wear  very 
long^  hair,  but  that  of  the  women  is  cut  short.  Bo^h 
are  nearly  naked,  and  filthy  in  the  extreme.  Most 
of  them jiiTie  tatoo^d,  th,e  women  especially  display- 
jng  in  general  a  lar^e  number  of  designs  on  their 
person.  They  do  this  merely  for  ornament^  and  not 
for  the  purpose  of  showing  a  dilTerence  in  rank  as  is 
the  case  in  most,  tribes  where  the  custom  exists 
.  Their  ,|u>usi^s .  or  lodges  are  very  simple.  In  the 
summer  tl^ey  put  a  number  of  bushes  together  in 
the  shape  o^  a  cone,  and  into  this  they  creejp  for 
shelter  from  the  sun  by  day,  a^d  to  sleep  by  mght. 
These  lodgeef  or  ten,tfi|  are  morejlesigned  to  keep  off 
the  rays  of  the  sun  than,  for  shelter  from  jhclement 
,  weather,.  Fpr  i)ie  cqld  and  we^t  [  seasons '  the  dig- 
gers in  tiie  northern  part  pf  Califorpia  have  a  d|f- 
ferenij  kind  Q^  ^welling.  They  dig  a  pit  seVeral 
feet  deep ,  of  the  size  pf  tlf e  proposed  lodge,  ^hien 
they  drive  poles  into  the  earth  around  the  edge  of 
the  pit,  and.bjend  them  oyer  |so  that  thity  will  liieet 
at  the  tpp»  wheijp  tfhey  are  fastened  together, 'ijEiakihg 
^  covering  over  jihe  pit.  iTjiey  iten  eoyer  the  w|iole 
building  with  earth, to  the  thfcknj^g  olf  severalinches, 
or  even  arpdt^  leaving  a  small  hole  at  the  tpo^  to 
setye  as  a  chimney.  ,  jAnpther  hple  is  uoade  a.rwe 
Bide,  large  enough  to  admit  the  body.    Whenitfliey 


# 


16 


MdUkeu)  Brayton, 


wish  to  sleep  they  bnild  a  firer^n  the  centre  of  the 
lodge,  then  creep  in  feet  foremost  and  lie  in  th|kt  po- 
sition to  the  fire. 

The  Diggers  have  a  curious  way  of  marrying. 
Whjpn  a  man  takes  a  fancy  to  a  girl  and  wants  her 
as  his  ^qnaw,  }ie  speaks  to  her  parents  and  talks  to 
her  a  little.  Then  he  lies  down  with  her,  and  if  she 
lies  still  they  are  considered  man  and  wife ;  but  if 
ahe  gets  up  and  runs  away,  the  courtship  is  at  an 
end,  and  the  man  never  tries  to  get  her  again.  A 
Digger  man  can  have  as  many  wives  as  he  chooses, 
but  the  woman  can  only  have  one  husband. 

When  a  Digger  dies  th^  burn  him,  with  all  his 
implements,  and  have  a  great  mourning  during  the 
ceremony.  They  believe  that  when  a  man  dies  his 
spirit  goes  to  the  East,  and  keeps  going  until  it 
/comes  to  a  gpreat  water.  A  large  boat  is  there  to 
to  take  him  over.  All  the  good  get  safely  across 
And  go  to  a  very  large  house  where  they  ea)b,  drink, 
and  gamble,  until  they  are  tired,  when  they  go  off 
Among  the  trees.  The  bad  people  who  go  in  the 
boat  reach  the  middle  of  the  water,  when  the  bot- 
tom falls  out,  and  they  are  lost  forever. 

Whilst  in  California  we  frequently  visited  what  is 
liow  San  Francisco,  but  whish  was  then  a  small  vil- 
Uge  of  a  dozen  houses,  known  by  the  Spaniards  as 
/^Yerba  Buena."  A  few  French  and  Spanish  tra- 
cers were  the  only  white  residents,  and  to  those  we 
carried  down  bear  meat,  buffalo  robes,  and  furs  of 
various  kinds,  together  wilii  small  bits  of  gold  found 
in  the  mountains,  receiving  in  exchange  blankets 
and  "snakyeye, "  or  whiskey.  These  trips  were  made 
several  times  during  the  year,  but  were  fiif^Uy  ter- 
minated by  the  occurrence  that  resulted  in  our 
jleaying  that  part  of  the  country.  A  large  party  of 
Diggers  surprised  a  smAll  hunting  party  of  Snakes 


The  Indian  Captive, 


n 


. ) 


and  took  firom  them  their  ponies.  A  number  of 
warriors  were  sent  oat  from  oar  tr^be  to  demand 
them  bock,  bat  the  Diggers  had  surrendered  the 
ponies  to  the  Spaniards,  and  now  ask«d  their  pro- 
tection from  the  vengeance  of  the  Snakes  The 
Spaniards  granted  their  request,  and  warned  our 
party  off.  As  soon  as  the  news  arrived  at  the  Snake 
village,  there  was  a  general  excitement,  and  all  who 
were  able  to  bear  arms  at  once  took  the  war  patii. 
The  Diggers  fled,  bnt  were  tracked  to  the  coa^, 
where  they  were  supported  by  lereral  Spaniards^ 
We  attacked  their  camp  at  day  br^k,  and  a  desper- 
'  ate  fight  ensued.  The  Diggers  are  generally,  lazy 
and  cowardly,  but  their  numbers  far  l^ceeded  ours, 
and  they  were  assisted  by  white  men.  In  the  end 
we  were  victors,  and  our  party  mercilessly  toma- 
hawked and  scalped  all  within  their  reach.  Nearly 
a  hundred  and  fifty  scalps  were  borne  off  in  triumph 
by  the  Snakes,  and  among  the  tropliies  were  the 
scalps  of  some  white  men. 

The  result  of  this  fight  was  a  general  movement 
of  the  whites  on  the  one  hand  and  ^e  California 
tribes  on  the  other,  to  drive  us  out  of  the  country. 
For  a  time  our  tribe  stood  its  ground,  bat  at  length 
it  became  evident  that  we  could  not  remain  peile- 
ably  in  that  region,  so  we  once  more  tarned  our  faeei 
eastward  and  re-crossed  the  mountains  to  Utah. 

During  our  stay  in  this  Territory,  which  ,dM  not 
exceed  six  or  seven  moons,  our  principal  encansp- 
ment  was  on  the  banks  of  the  Great  Salt  Li^e,  niir 
the  present  site  of  Salt  Lake  City.  At  that  iiine 
not  a  white  man  lived  in  that  vast  wifdemess,  though 
not  many  years  afterwards  a  large  city  sprang  up 
where  our  wigwams  had  formerly  stood. 

Once  more  our  tribe  became  restless  and  dissaAis-, 
fied  with  their  location,  and  we  changed  our  huntin|f 

■'I  ■ 


• 


Iff 


MaUhew  Brayton, 


ground  to  Oregon,  remftining  there  aboat  tw:o  jearB. 
Here  we  came  into  collision  with  the  Blaclsfcet  In- 
dians, one  of  the  most  ferocioas  and  cruel  trijbes  in 
existence.  They  are  alwajs  at  war  with  the  tribes 
around  them,  and  make  long  journeys  for  the  puF- 
pose  of  attacking  some  other  nation.  Several  skir- 
mishes took  place  between  our  bands  and  tho^e  of 
the  Blackfeet,  tn  whicb  sometimes  one  and  spmetinea 
the  other  would  be  sueeessful.  In  order  to  defend 
eurselyes  from  the  attacks  of  the  Blackfeet  our 
tribe  made  aa  allianee  with  the  Flat  Heads.  These 
are  a  very  singular  raee»  who  strap  Iboaids  on  the 
illeads  of  tbcir  children  so  as  to  change  their  shape. 
There  are  two  kinds  of  Flat  Heads,  those  who  have' 
the  head  flattened  from  the  foreliead  baek,  making 
the  bead  \o€^  like  a  wedge  witli  the  sharp  edge  in 
front,  whilst  the  others  ha?e  the  sides  flattened  so  a» 
to  have  the  pOint  of  the  wedge  upwards.  The  par- 
:  ty  allied  ^^^  °^  ^^'^  ^^  ^^  former  kind.  A  part 
of  the  tltahs  also  joined  us,  about  this  time,  as  did 
the  Crees.  , 

;:  Onr  associated  tribes  kept  going  farther  IVortln 
,iiit  finding  any  place  to  settle,  owing  to  the  constant 
.attacks  of  the  Indians  through  whose  territories  we 
passed.  With  the  Bloods  and  the  Blackfeet  we  had 
repeated  fights  until  we  got  above  their  country,  be- 
yond the  territory  of  the  Ifnited  States,  and  into  the 
country  of  the  Copper  Head  Indians,  who  roamed 
ever  a  vast  extent  of  territory  extending  to  the  Es- 
quimaux on  the  North. 

Our  associated  tribes  united  in  the  Nortli  with 
the  Copper  Hea(fe,  and  here  the  whole  lived  in  un- 
disputed possessiou,  from  that  time  to  the  present 


#■ 


The  Indian  Captive. 


II 


♦  ,1 


CHAPTER  IIL 

MATTHEW  BRATTON'S  NAAftRTIYE  CONTINUED. 

Government  of  Snake  and  Copper-Head  Tribes — 
Wov^en  worked  hard—mMdirrUtge  Laws — Chil' 
dren  taught  the  use  of  weapons  early— Funeral 
Ceremonies  of  the  Copper-Beads -"Their  Be- 
ligion. 

The  Snakes  and  Co|)|(>er-£teiad«  afie  raled  over  hj 
one  general  chief,  •or  Inkupudia,  who  remains  in 
poweif  for  life,  unless  deposed  by  the  vote  of  all  the 
tribes.  Since  the  anion  of  the  U'ibes  there  has 
beeii  but  one  General  Chief,  n^w  an  old  man,  eightf 
years  of  Age,  named  O-tcakh-kah-ke'naw,  Be 
reigns  supreme  to  a  certain  extent  and  appoints 
fittb  chiefe  to  ^v«rti  tlie  diffemnt  tribes.  These 
«ub-chiefs  are  appointed  for  a  period  of  time,  and  not 
for  ^|b  The  General  Chief  makes  known  his  laws 
or  d^ees  for  the  government  of  the  tribes  in  va^ 
rioas  matters,  and  it  is  the  daty  of  the  snb-chiefii 
to  eoMmtmieate  these  decides  to  tlie  tribes  ondei* 
their  charge.  The  laws  in  relation  to  stealing  are 
very  strict.  Any  one  proved  to  have  stolen  from  a 
person  belonging  to  the  associated  tribes  Is  con-^ 
demned  to  death,  aod  is  generally  bomed  lit  tbt 
stake.  It  16  looked  tipon  as  very  disgraceM  for  a« 
Indian  to  tell  a  lie  to  his  fellows. 

The  men  dress  With  leggings  fastened  to  their 
moccasins.  The  leggings  extend  up  to  the  knees. 
A  tunic  of  furs  is  wora  about  the  waist,  and  tEe 
bare  place  between  the  tunic  and  the  leggings  is  '^ 
daubed  wltli  oil  and  paint*  From  the  waist  up- 
wards ijhe  body  is  daubed  vtHjUl  oil  and  paint,  and 
the  hair  is  worn  long,  extending  down  over  the' 
breast  and  back.  The  women  are  dressed  in  a^some- 
what  similar  manner. 


I 


to 


MaUKew  Brayion, 


The  men  do  nothing  bnt  hunt  and  fight,  letfring 
thf  women  and  eaptives  to  do  the  drndgery.  The 
women  are  very  hard  worked,  haying  to  collect 
wood  for  fires,  cut  np  the  game,  carry  the  heary 
burdens  and  do  the  other  work  which  the  warrior 
considers  beneath  his  dignity  to  perform.  They  are 
yery  hardy  and  can  perform  with  ease  labors  which 
many  white  men  would  shrink  from. 

The  marriage  laws  yary  among  different  tribes. 
Among  the  Copper-Heads  the  marriage  is  for  life. 
The  Utahs  mar^  for  twelve  moons,  and  if  at  the 
end  of  that  time  they  separate  they  cannot  re-marry 
at  any  subsequent  time.  If  there  is  a  boy  bom  of 
the  marriage,  it  goes  with  the  father,  and  if  a  girl 
the  mother  takes  it.  The  Snakes  marry  for  three 
years,  and  if  after  that  time  they  choose  to  livMp- 
gether  they  are  married  for  life.  .  ^^ 

The  birw  of  a  child  is  accomplished  without  any 
troable  or  assistance  from  either  doctor,  midwife  or 
nurse.  The  mother  retires  to  her  lodge,  or  if  on 
the  march,  steps  aside  and  spreads  her  bjanket,  and 
in  the  course  of  two  or  three  hours  slTe  is  up  and 
about  her  accustomed  work,  or  on  the  march,  as  if 
l^othing  had  happened. 

The  child,  when  young,  is  wrapped  around  with 
bandages,  strapped .  to  a  board  and  carried  on  the 
mother's  back.  When  in  the  lodge,  or  at  any  oth- 
er tinU^  that  she  wishes,  to  take  the  child  down,  the 
board  with  the  infant  on  it,  is  set  to  lean  against 
the  wall,  or  is  hung  to  a  peg. 

As  soon  as  a  boy  is  able  to  run  about  bis  educa- 
tion for  the  chase  and  the  war  path  is  commenced. 
A  bow  three  and  a  half  feet  long,  strung  with  the 
sinews  of  the  deer  or  elk,  is  plac^  in  his  hand,  and 
a  bundle  of  two  feet  arrows,  with  flint  heads  and 
feathered  shafts,  is  given  him.    With  these  he  prae* 


The  Indian  Captive, 


fll 


• ; 


tices  at  a  mark  nntil  he  is  proficient.  A  board^ls 
then  set  np,  and  a  circle  about  six  inches  in  diaM» 
ter  is  described  on  it.  The  yonng  Indian  takes  mi 
position  at  a  short  distance  from  tbie  board,  and 
commences  throwing  his  knife  at  it  with  the  end^: 
or  to  strike  the  centre  of  the  circle.  When  he  Ab- 
ceeds  in  doing  this  freqaeutlj,  he  increases  his  ais- 
tance  from  the  board,  and  keeps  on  retreating  nn- 
til he  can  strike  the  circle  with  unerring  aim  from 
as  great  a  distance  as  his  strength  will  permit. 

The  tontahawk  practice  comes  next.  A  mark  is 
described  on  the  bark  of  a  tree,  and  the  young  In- 
dian throws  his  tomahawk  at  it  with  gpreat  force, 
endeavoring  to  make  it  whirl  three  times  in  the  air. 
and  then  to  strike  with  the  sharp  pick  at  the  back 
of  the  az-head,  so  that  it  shall  remain  sticking  in 
the  mark.  As  in  the  knife  practice,  success  at  one 
distance  is  immediately  followed  by  a  retreat  of  a 
few  paces,  nntil  the  feat  can  be  accomplished  at  a 
considerable  distance.  Hhe  same  routine  is  gone 
through  with  the  ax  part,  so  that  it  shall  cleave  the 
bark  in  the  very  centre  of  the  mark.  At  about  ten 
years  of  age,  a  long  bow,  with  arrows  of  propo^^ 
tionate  length,  is  put  into  the  hands  of  the  boy,  and 
when  he  becomes  of  sufficient  age  to  manage  it  pro- 
perly he  is  instructed  in  the  use  of  the  rifle. 

The  boys  are  incited  to  begin  hunting  and  trap- 
ping early,  and  their  first  success  in  trapping  a 
beaver,  shooting  a  martin^  or  spearing  a  muskrat  is 
celebrated  with  as  much  triumph  as  is  the  first  Scalp 
taken  in  battle  by  a  young  warrior.  When  about 
twelve  years  old  the  boys  joiii  the  hunting.parties, 
and  are  very  expert  in  the  use  of  the  bow.  Many 
widows  are  supported  entirely  by  their  sons  wk<» 
have  just  passed  their  twelfth  year. 


fe^ 


22 


Mdlthew  Drayton, 


The  small  children  and  the  very  old  people  are 
allowed  the  use  of  cooked  meat,  but  all  others  eat 
their  food  raw.      Xo  salt  is  uped,  bat  pepper  is  I.e- 

SuenUy  obtained  from  the  Russian  find  Hudson 
lay  trading  posts,  and  is  eaten  with  the  food  as  a 
great  addUion.  B«8il«6  the  priyilege  of  eating 
cooked  meat,  the  very  old  people  are  well  cared  for 
by  the  tribe,  a^id  are  allowed  to  remain  in  their 
lodges  without  being  called  out  to  hunt  or  work. 
Everything  l&doue  for  them,  and  they  enjoy  perfect 
rest  uptil  their  death. 

The  Copper-Heads  do  not,  in  general,  bury  their 
dead  in  the  same  manner  with  many  of  the  tribes 
in  the  United  States  territory.  In  some  eases, 
when  a  warrior  dies,  the  dead  body  is  placed  in  a 
bir^K  bark  canoe,  in  which  are  also  laid  the  dead 
walrior's  rifle,  tomahawk,  pipe,  knife,  and  all  the 
other  articles  belonging  to  him  when  alive.  Two 
blaiikets,  and  provisions  to  lafit  six  months  are  also 
placed  in  the  eaaoe#  A  poor  miserable  dog  is  next 
procured  and  hung  up  by  the  hind  legs  to  a  tree  or 
pole  stuck  in  the  ground.  The  throat  of  the  dog  is 
cut  and  th^  anittal  suffered  to  bleed  to  death.  The 
object  of  this  ceremony  is  to  provide  a  dog  to  hunt 
with  in  the  spirit  land,  ^nd  the  bad  blood  is  let  out 
80  as  to  fit  the  animal  for  its  new  sphere  of  exist- 
ence. A  poor  dog  is  as  serviceable  as  a  good  one 
for  the  happy  bunting  grounds,  if  the  bad  blood  is 
taken  out.  Some  powdered  roots  are  then  «prinkled 
over  the  body,  and  the  canoe  with  its  contents  is 
launched  on  the  river,  if  there  is  one  in  the  neigh- 
borhood, and  the  deceased  warrior  goes  on  his  way 
to  the  happy  hunting  grounds.  If  there  is  no  river 
near,  the  canoe  wiih  it,fi .  cofitents  k  placed  on  the 
branches  of  ^a  tree,  or  on  a  t,emporary  scaffold,  and 
there  left.    ^oQietimes  in  conformity  with  the  wishes 


\ 


% 


*•'  'S* 


The  Indian  Captive, 


28 


of  the  deceased,  the  body  is  buried  und^r  the  roots 
of  a  tree,  or  placed  in  a  hollow  log,  to  wait  until 
there  is  some  good  company  to  join  in  the  Jonmey 
to  the  happy  hunting  grounds. 

The  religion  of  these  tribes  is  very  simple. 
They  worship  the  Great  Spirit  by  standing  and  pray- 
ing, with  arms  uplifted  to  the  sky.  At  times  when 
they  see  a  dark  storm-cloud  rising  up  the  sky  they 
address  ^it,  belieyfng  the  Great  spirit  to  be  hid 
within  it.  After  a  prayer,  on  some  particular  oc- 
casions, they  drink  "snakyeye''  or  whisky,  and 
dance  with  whooping  and  yelling.  They  do  not  be- 
Keye  in  a  place  of  punishment  hereafter.  Those 
who  haye  committed  crimes  in  this  world  will  be 
punished  here  by  their  tribe,  or  else  the  Greet  Spir- 
it will  yi jit  them  with  sickness  or  trouble.  After 
this  life  is  oyer,  the  spirits  all  go  to  the  happy 
bunting  grounds,  where  there  is  plenty  of  'game» 
and  where  no  enemies  will  come  to  disturb  them. 


\ 


f  .  CHAPTER  IV. 

MATTHEW  BRATTON'S  NARRATIVE  OONTINrXI>. 

Climate — Esqmma'ua; — Trading — Mode  of  Sleep- 
ing-^Method  of   Tamis^  Ponie*  and  Elks — « 
^0  Weapons — Making  Pipes. 

^     The  territory  occupied  by  the  Oopper-Heitds  and 
^the  associated  tribes,  lies  west  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, in  the  high  latitndes,  extending  so  far  bortb 
as  the  Russian  Possessions.     Their  hunting  grounds 


fi 


Matthew  Braylon, 


ccver  a  space  of  several  handred  miles,  and  the  nat- 
ural characteristics  of  the  coautry  are  mnch  diver-^ 
sified.  Barren  mountain  ranges  alternate  with  wide 
plains,  fruitful  valleys  and  dense  forests.  We  met 
with  but  few  rivers  in  onr  hunt,  but  from  the  Esqui- 
maux, and  a  few  stragglers  belonging  to  tribes  on 
the  east  side  of  the  mountains,  we  had  reports  of 
many  rivers  and  big  waters  on  the  other  side.  Our 
northern  head-quarters  was  about  three  weeks'  jour- 
ney from  the  Arctic  Ocean.  To  the  north  east  of 
as,  about  two  weeks'  journey,  was  Big  Esquimaux 
village. 

The  climate  in  the  northern  part  of  our  hunting 
grounds  is  cold  through  the  greater  part  of  the 
year,  and  the  ground  mostly  covered  with  snow. 
The  trees  in  this  region  are  of  pine,  c^dar,.  white 
hemlock,  and  some  other  kinds.  During^he  great- 
er part  of  the  year  they  remain  bare,  but  as  soon  as 
the  temperature  begins  to  moderate  a  little,  the 
leaves  come  out  about  the  size  of  a  squirrel's  ear. 
They  continue  oat  but  for  a  short  time,  when  they 
drop  off,  and  the  tree  is  once  more  bare.  The  elk, 
reindeer,  and  the  ponies  of  the  Indians  all  feed  on 
the  bark  of  the  trees,  and  the  moss. 

Snow  falls  repeatedly  during  the  year,  bat  no 
rain.    There  are  numerous  storms. 

With  the  Esquimaux,  who  live  on  the  shores  of 
theoretic  Pcean,  our  tribes  have  formerly  had  skir- 
mishes, but  the  difficulties  have  all  been  settled,  and 
there  is  now  a  lasting  peace,  although  but  slight  in- 
tercourse between  the  races.  The  Esquimaux- are  a 
dirty  people,  generally^hort,  thick  set,  with  matted 
hair,  and  afflicted  with  the  scurvy.  They  wrap 
themselves  up  in  furs,  and  live  on  any  kind  of  car- 
rion. They  will  eat  worms,  bugs  or  snakes  when 
tiiej  cannot  get  game;  but  their  principal  luxury  is 


# 


^ 


I 

T?ie  Indian  CapHve, 


S6 


oil.  Tbej  make  oil  from  the  carcasses  of  the  ani- 
mals they  obtain,  and  enjoy  it  as  a  great  luxnry. 
They  live  in  hntg  made  of  snow  and  ice,  and  when 
moving  from  place  to  place  they  have  tents  made  of 
furs  and  skins.  In  traveling,  they  use  sleds  drawn 
by  reindeer  and  dogs.  The  Copper* Heads  never 
have  sleds,  bnt  use  ponies  and  elk,  both  for  riding 
and  packing  gome  and  other  burdens 

The  Oopp^fHeads  principally  trade  with  the  Rus- 
sian posts,  and  make  trips  to  them  several  times  a 
year.  They  also  send  an  expedition  twice  a  year 
to  the  Red  River  settlement,  and  from  there  to  St. 
Paul.  All  the  dried  meats,  furs  and  other  articles 
are  packed  on  the  backs  of  ponies  and  elks  or  car- 
ried by  women  and  such  captives  as  are  in  the  keep- 
ing of  the  tribe.  The  mode  of  packing  on  the 
backs  of  women  is  for  a  belt,  three  fingers  wide,  to 
be  passed  across  the  forehead,  and  lie  down  the 
back.  The  pack  is  placed  so  as  to  rest  on  the  bot- 
tom of  the  belt,  and  lie  on  the  shoulders  and  nqck. 
The  bearer  is  obliged  to  stoop  forward  in  walking, 
and  the  back  is  frequently  bent  from  thifl^4au8e. 
Being  a  captive,  I  was  sometimes  compelled  to  car- 
ry a  load  but  about  fifteen  pounds  less  than  my  own 
weight,  and  the  squaws  have  to  carry  within  about 
twenty  pounds  of  their  own  weight 

From  the  Russians  we  obtain  blankets, 
rifles,  and  other  necessary  articles,  in  eyol 
furs  and  dried  meats.     Among  other  thhi|(t/_ 
chased  of  the  Russians,  the  toibe  possesses  a  oi^if 

Eass  and  a  watch,  enclosed  in  a  copper  case.    Tl^y 
ave  learned  the  use  df  the  compass  sufficiently  to 
enable  them  to  travel  by  its  aid. 

The  lodges  are  made  of  poles  stuck  in  the  ground 
and  tied  together  at  the  top,  so  as  lo  leave  a  nok  in 
the  centre.    Furs  and  skins  are  then  fastened  aroand 


t*f':ti-      ^1 


1i!iu;v<r,,..3 


26 


Matthew  Bray  ton  f 


and  made  tight,  except  at  the  entrance.  A  fire  is 
built  in  the  centre  of  the  lodge,  and  the  members 
of  the  lodge  creep  in  and  sleep  ivith  their  ftet  to 
the  fire,  and  their  heads  to  the  side  of  the  lodge. 

In  traytling,  when  the  show  is  on  the  ground, 
and  (he  party  do  not  take  the  lodge  fixtures 
along,  the  snow  is  stamped  down  and  the  blanket 
spread  on  the  hardened  snow.  On  this  the  Indian 
lies  down  and  rolls  himself  up  in  the  blanket.  With 
this  mode  of  sleeping  there  is  no  danger  of  taking 

cold.  ■'■  :4).;).j.;  -7    ;^ 

When  the  snow  is  very  deep  and  light,  the  hunt- 
ers wear  wide  snow  shoes  to  prevent  their  sinking 
at  eyeitj  step*  'I  he  ponies  are  also  shod  with  wide 
moccasms  stuffed  with  hair,  when  the  snow  is  so 
deep  that  they  cannot  travel  with  ease. 

The  bcHSts  of  burden  used  by  the  Indians  are 
ponies,  elks  and  dogs.  Both  elks  and  ponies  have 
to  be  broken  into  submission  to  man  before  they  can 
be  used  When  the  Indians  want  to  break  in  a  po- 
ny for  riding,  one  of  them  mounts  a  well  broke  pony 
and,  after  riding  around  for  a  little  while,  suddenly 
dashes  up  to  the  untamed  pOny,  and,  seizing  it  by 
the  mane^  leaps  on  its  back.  The  first  effort  of  the 
surprised  animal  is  to  throw  the  unexpected  burden 
over^ts  head,  or  failing  in  this  to  rise  on  its  hind 
legs  and  throw  its  rider  backwards.  To  prevent 
either  of  these  purposes  being  accomplished,  the  ri- 
der clasps  his  arms  around  the  neck  of  the  pony  ^nd 
crosses  his  legs  under  its  belly,  so  that  the  toes  are 
inserted  between  the  forelegs  of  the  animal  By 
these  means  the  pony  is  rendered  unable  to  jerk  the 
rider  off  in  any  direction.  Foiled  in  its  efforts  to 
dislodge  the  uifUsual  encumbrance  on  its  back,  the 
pony  generally  sets  off  in  a  wild  gallop,  in  which  it 
IS  indulged  by  the  rider,  and  an  unexpected  difficul- 


N 


The  Indian  Captive. 


2t 


N 


; 


ty  of  breathing  soon  brings  the  unruly  beast  to  terms. 
A^  soon  as  it  gets  somewhat  tired  of  its  useless  ex* 
citements^  the  rider  steals  his  hand  down  to  its  nose 
and  th€!re  holds  some  sugar  and  salt.  If  the  animal 
prove  insensible  to  the  temptation  thus  held  out,  the 
rider  gradually  works  hi&  hand  up  until  he  gets  some 
of  the  mixture  into  its  mouth.  The  taste  of  these 
articles  is  generally  sufficient  ||  subdue  the  strong 
will  of  the  pony,  and  to  complete  the  work  the  rider 
puffs  tobacco  smoke  up  its  nostrils.  It  is  now  thor- 
oughly broken  in,  and  will  sit  easily  under  &  rider 
or  tbllow  its  owner  like  a  dog;  The  Indian  never 
abuses  his  horse,  but  always  treats  it  as  a  friend,  'x 

The  elk  is  of  great  service  to  the  Indians  in  high 
latitudes,  and  shares  with  the  pony  the  attentions  of 
its  owner.  The  method  uf  catching  and  taming  elk 
is  for  One  hunter  to  throw  a  lasso,  or  running  noose 
at  tl^e  end  of  a  long  line,  on  one  horn,  whilst  another 
hunter  does  the  same  to  the  othfr  horn.  The  linest 
are  then  <|uickly  made  fast  to  two  trees,  and  the 
hind  legs  tied  to  two  other  trees  in  a  similar  m^^n- 
ner.  Whilst  thus  fnstened  in  a  nearly  immovable 
position  the  man  who  is  to  break  in  the  animal  comes 
up  and  leaps  on  his  back.  The  ropes  are  simulta< 
neously  cut  by  the  other  Indians,  and  the  elk  dashes 
off  with  its  burden.  The  rider  embraces  the  horns 
with  his  arms  and  crosses  his  feet  below  the  belly  of 
the  animal,  as  iiii  breaking  ponies.  The  elk  pursues 
his  headlong  career  for  miles,  the  branching  horns 
preventing  his  dashing  among  the  trees  in  such  a 
manner  As  to  Hiirt  the  rider.  After  the  elk  is  thor- 
oughly spent  by  his  long  scamper,  it  is  ti'eaied  in  the 
same  manner  as  in  the  case  of  ponies. 

The  weapons  of  the  Snakes  and  Copper-Heads 
consist  of  rifles,  bnws  and  arrows,  spears,  toma- 
hawks, hunting  knives,  scalping  knives,  and  war- 


18 


■*■■■. 


Matthew  Brayton, 


clubs.  The  arrow  heads  are  made  of  flint,  and 
much  care  is  used  in  digging  up,  selectiog  and 
splitting  the  proper  kind  of  flint.  The  pipes  are  al- 
so made  of  flint,  and  take  a  large  amount  of  patience 
and  labor  in  their  manufacture.  The  pipe  I  made 
for  myself  was  first  squared  out  from  a  flint  and 
then  drilled  with  a  steeUmplement,  worked  hj  hand. 
I  worked  thirty  days  t<^6mplete  the  boring  process, 
using  bear's  oil  and  water  to  moisten'  the  stone. 
After  the  hole  was  bored,  another  steel  chisel  was 
taken,  and  the  pipe  chipped  into  proper  shape.  In 
doing  the  chiseling,  the  pipe  was  placed  between  two 
other  stones  to  act  as  a  vice,  and  the  whole  pressed 
between  my  knees.  Then  I  chippped  away,  using 
my  clenched  hand  as  a  mallet.  After  the  pipe  had 
been  chipped  into  shape  and  then  ornamentcol  with 
cut  designs,  it  was  first  oiled  and  then  dyed  a  pale 
red  with  a  pigment  extracted  i'rom  a  root.  A  stem 
of  cherry  or  other  wood  inserted  in  this  pipe  com- 
pletes it. 


<i^i> 


CHAPTER  V. 

MATTHEW  BBATTON'S  VARRATTTS   CONTINUED. 

ffurUing  Buffalo — The  attack — Cutting  up  the  car- 
cass^ Packing  to  the  camp — Drying  the  meat — 
Buffalo  hunting  in  winter —  Trapping  hears  and 
wolves — Spearing  muskrats — Dressing  skins — 
Different  modes  of  fishing.  • 

Hunting  is  the  principal  occupatiovi  of  the  Indians, 
and  their  only  means  of  subsistence.  The  olimatt 
does  not  admit  the  raising  of  crops,  even  if  the  In- 


*'• 


The  Indian  Captive, 


i% 


dians  were  disposed  to  till  the  ground,  which  they 
are  pot.  Daring  the  fall  the  camps  are  removed  to 
the  lower  part  of  the  British  territory  in  order  to 
hunt  the  buffalo. 

To  show  how  the  buffalo  are  killed,  I  m\\  relate 
my  experience  on  one  of  the  hunts  in  which  I  was 
engaged.  fl|| 

Our  hunting  party,  wit^ie  families  of  the  hunt- 
ers, traveled  for  seven  days  nefore  reaching  the  tra- 
ces of  any  herds.  A  few  stray  bulls  were  killed, 
and  some  of  their  flesh  eaten,  but  it  was  too  hard 
and  tough  for  good  eating.  At  length  we  arrived 
at  the  place  where  there  were  strong  hopes  of  find- 
ing buffalo,  and  our  camp  was  fixed.  Early  next 
morning  the  hunting  party  rode  off,  leaving  the 
squaws  and  children  to  make  arrangements  for  pre- 
paring the  meat  when  it  should  be  brought  to  the 
camp. 

After  riding  a  Short  distance,  we  came  on  traces 
of  a  large  herd,  and  then  rode  forward  in  high 
spirits.  We  soon  came  in  sight  of  some  bolls  feed- 
ing quietly,  and  beyond  them  could  discover  a  large 
herd  of  cows.  The  difference  between  the  sexes 
can  be  seen  at  a  longdistance  by  their  mode  of  herd- 
ing. The  bulls  feed  singly,  and  are  scattered  over 
the  prairies^  whilst  the  cows  huddle  together  as  if 
for  protection.  The  bulls  are  the  most  savage,  but 
the  cows  are  the  fleetest  of  foot,  and  are  very  diffi- 
cult tQ  approach.  Their  flesh  is,  however,  more 
highly  esteemed  than  that  of  the  bulls,  it  being 
more  tender  and  juicy. 

Or^reconnoitering  the  respective  groups  it  beetime 
evident  that  we  could  not  reach  the  cows  without 
first  breaking  through  the  herd  of  bulls,  and  this 
we  prepared  to  do  at  once.  Hiding  slowly  up  so  as 
Hot  to  alarm  them,  we  approached  withia  a  few  hmi* 


30 


Matthew  Brayton, 


dred  yards  of  them  before  they  took  much  notice  of 
us.  Then  they  ceased  feeding  and  eommemsed  bel* 
lowing  furiously. 

i>  At  this  the  signal  was  given,  and  our  fleet  ponies 
were  spurred  rapidly  towards  the  herd.  When 
close  to  them,  eacljMinter  singled  out  a  buffHio,  and 
dashing  impotuou^^ast  the  animal,  discharged  an 
arrow  into  its  neoK  1  hose  whose  arrows  did  not 
fatally  HOund  the  beasts  were  at  once  exposed  to 
imminent  danger,  as  nothing  exceeds  a  wounded 
buffalo  in  ferocity  and  strength.  Risins  for  a  mo- 
ment on  their  hind  feet,  they  dash  furiously  at  the 
hunters,  butting  at  them,  and  attempting  to  upset 
horse  and  man.  Sometimes  they  suceeed,  and  then 
the  hunter  suffers  terrible  wounds,  if  not  death,  from 
th\B  horns  of  the  enraged  animal. 

Five  or  six  bulls  were  killed  in  the  attack,  and 
the  rest  scattered  wildly  over  the  prairie.  The 
sight  of  the  immense  herd  of  cows  in  the  distance 
excited  the  hunters,  and  prevented  them  from  stop- 
ping to  make  any  use  of  the  bulls  we  had  killed. 
We  rode  forward  at  a  moderate  speed  for  some  dis- 
tance, reserving  the  strength  of  our  horses  un^il  we 
should  be  compelled  to  use  their  speed.  At  length 
the  scouts  of  the  herd  saw  us  advancing,  and  in 
two  OP  three  seconds  the  whole  herd  was  in  motion. 
The  first  movements  of  the  buffalo  are  slow,  in- 
creasing in  speed  as  they  go.  At  the  first  symp- 
toms of  alarm  our  party  raised  a  shout  to  encourage 
the  horses,  and  we  were  suddenly  flying  along  at 
full  speed,  the  horses  as  much  excited  as  their  riders. 
The  excitement  was  intense.  At  last  we  were  close 
to  them,  and  the  arrows  flew  thick  and  fast  into  the 
herd.  In  a  few  moments  we  were  in  the  midst  of 
l^e  press,  firing  arrows  and  using  spears  among  the 
animals  right  and  left. 


The  Indian  Captive. 


31 


The  scene  was  full  of  wild  excitement  and  not 
without  danger.  Some  of  our  party  were  thrown 
from  their  horses  and  suffered  severe  bruises  and 
wounds  from  the  feet  and  horns  of  the  enraged  buffa<^ 
loes.  At  last  the  sigpial  of  recall  was  given,  and 
our  party  reined  up  to  rest  from  the  chase  and  dfs^ 
pose  of  the  spoils.  Jjjj^ 

After  dismounting  and  hoffling  the  ponies,  the 
hunters  rested  awhile  before  pri^eeding  to  the  work 
of  cutting  up  the  bufifaloes  in  order  to  take  thorn 
home.  When  rested,  the  hunters  began  the  labor 
of  skinning  and  cutting  up  the  carcases.  The  an* 
imal  was  first  placed  oa  its  knees,  and  its  hind  legs 
stretched  out  to  their  full  length,  so  that  the  princi- 
pal weight  lay  on  the  belly  of  the  beast.  The  small 
hump  of  flesh  about  the  neck  was  first  cut  out  and 
carefully  placed  on  one  side.  The  skin  was  next  di« 
vided  along  the  back  bone,  and  stripped  down  on 
either  side.  After  this  the  animal  was  cut  up  in  va- 
rious pieces,  all  the  best  parts  being  taken  and  the 
offal  left  for  the  wolves.  The  fat  and  tallow  were 
put  in  the  hide,  which  was  then  slung  around  the 
necks  of  the  packing  ponies.  Along  each  side  of 
the  pony's  back  was  placed  a  pole,  fastened  to  the 
animal's  neck.  The  foot  of  the  buffalo's  hind  quar^ 
ter  was  thrust  through  the  gambril  of  the  fore  quar- 
ter, and  the  quarters  then  slung  across  the  back  of 
the  pony  and  hanging  down  on  each  side.  The 
poles  keep  the  burden  off  from  the  sides  of  the  po* 
ny,  and  prevent  its  back  being  broken.  The  other 
portions  of  the  game  were  0arried  in  a  similar  man- 
ner. 

When  the  meat  was  brought  to  the  camp,  the 
women  cut  it  into  long  strips,  about  a  quarter 
of  an  inch  thick.  These  strips  were  hung  on  sticks 
to  dry,  which  operation  takes  several  days.     When 


89 


MaUhevf  Srayton, 


'^ 


thtrougbly  dried,  the  women  bend  it  up  and  tie  it 
into  bundles,  in  which  shape  it  is  preserved  for  home 
consumption  or  taken  to  the  trading  posts,  to  be 
bartered  for  ammunition  or  other  articles  wanted  by 
the  Indians.  Some  parts  of  the  buffalo,  not  fitted 
for  making  the  dri^  meat,  were  dried  by  a  very 
fierce  fire  until  it  iRame  brittle.  A  buffalo  hide 
was  then  spread  otft,  with  the  skin  uppermost,  and 
the  dried  pieces  of  meat  spread  on  it,  and  thrashed 
into  small  bits  by  sticks.  The  tallow  of  the  buffalo 
was  cut  up,  melted  and  poured  on  the  powdered 
meat,  which  was  then  worked  up  until  it  became 
well  mixed.  Whilst  still  warm,  it  was  pressed  into 
bags  made  of  buffalo  skin,  which  were  then  sown 
up.  When  cold  the  mixture,  known  to  the  whites 
MpenUcan,  becomes  as  hard  as  a  rock,  and  makes 
good  eating.  The  marrow  bones  were  boiled  in 
water  for  their  oil,  which,  when  extracted,  was 
poured  into  the  bladder  of  the  animal.  One  blad- 
der will  hold  eleven  or  twelve  pounds  of  oil. 

Buffalo  are  frequently  killed  in  winter  without 
any  of  the  dangers  experienced  in  the  fall  hunt. 
The  alternate  thawing  and  freezing  forms  a  thick 
crust  on  the  surface  of  the  soft  snow.  The  heavy 
animals  break  through  this  thin  crust,  and  plunge 
cumbrously  into  the  deep  snow,  whilst  the  Indian 
hunter  glides  easily  on  his  snow  shoes  close  to  the 
side  of  the  unwieldly  monster,  and  dispatches  it  at 
his  ease. 

Elk,  reindeer,  grizzly  bears,  wolves,  with  some 
other  animals,  are  killed  with  rifles,  or  arrows,  fre- 
quently with  the  aid  of  dogs.  The  dogs  are  of  a 
strong,  powerful  breed,  and  are  trained  to  catch  by 
the  ears  or  jaw,  so  that  the  fur  is  not  injured.  The 
elk  and  reindeer  are  very  difficult  to  approach,  hav- 
ing a  keen  scent,  and  show  fight  if  close  pressed. 


> 


The  Indian  Captive. 


39 


> 


The  attack  on  a  grizslj  bear  is  also  dangerous,  and 
the  hunter  frequently  has  to  fight  desperately  for 
his  life. 

Black  bears  and  wolves  are  frequently  caught  by 
a  peculiar  trap.  A  young  sapling  tree  is  bent  down 
so  that  it  its  top  is  but  a  f(4|^feet  from  the  earth. 
A  rope,  formed  of  pieces  of  raw  hide  firmly  twisted 
together,  is  fastened  to  the  top  of  the  tree  and  a 
strong  double  hook  of  iron  or  steel  is  attached  to 
the  other  end  of  the  rope.  One  arm  of  the  hook 
is  lightly  caught  in  a  log  or  a  stake  driven  in  the 
ground,  and  on  the  other  arm  a  piece  of  meat  is 
firmly  attached.  The  bear  or  wolf  seizes  the  meat, 
and  in  its  endavors  to  carry  it  off  or  tear  it  to  pieces, 
releases  the  hook  from  the  log.  The  tree  top  sud- 
denly flies  up,  the  hook  catcbins  the  animal  in  the 
mouth  or  lip,  and  lifting  it  partially  or  completely 
from  the  around.  In  this  position  it  is  found  and 
dispatched  by  the  hunter, when  he  comes  to  exam- 
ine his  traps. 

Beaver  are  trapped  in  great  liumbers,  as  are  mar- 
tins and  other  fur- bearing  animals.  In  the  depth  of 
winter  the  muskrat  houses  are  sought  out  and  pierc- 
ed with  strong  and  sharp  spears  which  transfix  the 
muskrats  and  bring  them  out  on  the  points. 

The  skiiis  of  the  animals  killed  are  dried  and 
cured  by  the  women.  When  the  hide  is  taken  off 
and  brought  home,  the  women  scrape  off  the  flesh 
with  a  b«ne,  sharpened  at  one  end.  When  l^e  skin 
is  thorottj^hly  scraped,  small  holes  are  cut  all  aroond 
it,  and  strings  run  through  it,  which  are  then  lash- 
ed to  the  poles  of  the  lodge  inside.  The  fire  burn- 
ing the  lodge  dries  the  skin  in  one  night,  and  in  the 
morning  it  is  taken  down  and  folded  so  as  to  be 
packed.  In  dressing  the  skins,  the  grease  is  taken 
pff  and  the  skins  dipped  in  water  containing  the 


I; 


■»iwis»Hu>»WW.i.i'->»- 


34 


MaJl^iew  BraytoUf 


brains  of  a  deer,  after  which  they  are  boiled  and 
stretched  on  four  square  poles  tied  and  pushed  into 
the  around.  The  skin  is  then  scraped  with  a  bone 
and  kept  before  a  slow  fire  until  perfectly  dry.  It 
is  then  dipped  in  the  brain  water  and  scraped  dry 
again,  after  whiqh  it  is  dipppud  in  the  water  a  third 
time,  and  every  time  the  water  wrung  out  before 
the  skin  is  stretched  ^V  it  remains  hairy  or  Bti£f 
after  all  this  working,  it  is  draiihi  over  a  eof d  as 
thick  as  a  man's  ^nger,  as  hard  »8  the  \^  omen  can 
pull,  and  this  softens  it  greatly.  The  skin  is  next 
smoked.  A  hole  is  dug  m  the  ground,  about  a  foot 
deep,  in  which  is  put  a  little  wattr  and  some  rotten 
wood.  The  skin  is  then  »3wed  in  a  bag  and  hung 
over  the  smoke  for  about  t^u  minutes,  when  is  ready 
for  use. 

The  steams  are  well  stocked  with  fish,  and  thet^e 
are  caught  in  various  ways.  Sometimes  they  are 
speared,  and  some  are  shot  yfit\\  arrows,  and  some 
caught  by  stake^^  arranged  across  the  bed  of  the 
stream.  When  .Le  rivers  and  small  lakes  are  fro> 
sen  over  in  winter,  a  hole  is  cut  in  the  ice,  and  over 
it  a  little  tent  is  made  with  three  sticks  and  a  blanket, 
so  as  to  close  out  the  lights  The  Indian  lies  with 
his  face  over  the  hole.  He  can  then  see  to  some 
depth,  and  when  a  fish  passes,  it  is  pierced  with  a 

j|hort  spear,  and  brought  to  the  surface. 

*'v    There  are  various  other  ways  of  hunting,  trap- 
ping and  fishing,'^  but  these  will  serve  as  specimens. 


'  1 


The  Indian  Cajjliue. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

MATTHEW  BRAYTON'S  NARRATIVE  OOMTINUEO. 

I%.recognized  as  a  xokUe  man —  Wur  dance^'Fighi 
with  Black/eet  Indiant — Tomahawking  and 
burning  captivei. 

Nine  years  ag^HHflfcr  in  the  north  was  ex- 
ceedingly severeJ^^^^^^ame  was  compelled  to 
seek  a  more  soutl^^^^Hi^  to  get  something  to 
eat.  We  folloWecMHPRwn,  but  were  in  great 
danger  of  perishing  of  famine.  In  this  strait  our 
only  hope  was  in  obtaining  some  additional  supplies 
from  the  trading  posts.  A  large  detachment  was 
therefore  sent  on  to  the  post  of  the  Hudson  Bay 
Company,  for  the  purpose  of  obtaining  supplies. 
"With  this  band  I  traveled. 

We  arrived  at  the  post  after  a  long  journey,  and 
were  received  with  kindness  The  few  furs  and 
skins  we  were  able  to  gather  up  we  traded  for  pro- 
visions, but  we  were  still  in  great  w'ant.  That  night 
we  camped  near  the  trading  post,  and  waitea  to 
plead  our  cause  with  the  agent  nexi  day. 

In  the  morning  whilst  the  chief  of  our  party  and 
some  of  the  leading  warriors  were  talking  to  the 
agent  and  explaining  to  him  the  deplorable  condition 
of  the  tribe,  one  of  the  traders  came  into  our  camp. 
Whilst  looking  around  and  talking,  he  came  close  to 
me,  and  something  seemed  to  attract  his  intention. 
Looking  me  in  the  eyes  he  riirlrlonlj/liliifc"  in 
French.  I  did  not  understand  him  but  he,  uSndi- 
ately  addressed  me  in  Indian  langUaji^'; 
"  You  are  no  Indian. "      I  replied  that  t" 


/fori 

never  remembered  anything  of  a  life  diffefHK  from 
the  one  I  was  leading.  He  insisted  that  I  was  no 
Indian,  but  a  pale  face,  and  demanded  that  I  should 
come  before  the  agent.     I  was  about  to  do  so,  when 


H 


Matthew  Braytorit 


some  of  the  tribe  interfered  to  prevent  me.  An 
anffry  discussion  now  took  place  between  the  trader 
and  tAie  Indians,  ending  in  my  being  taken  before 
the  agent  himself. 

On  my  entering  the  circle  where  the  ohiefii  and 
principal  warriors  were  conferring  with  the  agent,  I 
was  at  once  brought  before  the  latter  by  the  trader, 
and  my  white  birtt]y^M|A^Khim.  The  agent  ex- 
amined my  featuret^^^^Hjkd  endeavored  to  get 
from  me  by  con^req^^^^Hier  I  was  a  white  or 
not.  1  was  surpn^HHppse  statements,  but  re- 
plied that  1  always  consiaered  myself  an  Indian. 
The  members  of  the  tribe  present  in  the  council 
were  greatly  disturbed  when  I  was  brought  before 
the  agent,  and  on  being  appealed  to  strongly  assert- 
ed my  Indian  parentage.  I  could  not  tail  to  remark 
their  alarm  lest  I  should  be  claimed  as  a  white,  and 
pondered  over  it  for  some  time. 

The  agent  was  quieted  for  a  time,  but  was  not 
satisfied,  and  all  at  the  post  continued  to  watch  our 
movements  narrowly.  Next  day  whilst  getting 
some  provisions  from  the  post,  our  chief  was  agi^in 
asked  about  me,  and  was  told  that  no  more  provis- 
ions would  be  given  the  party  unless  I  was  surren- 
dered to  the  whites.  At  this  the  chief  returned  to 
the  camp  in  dismay,  and  a  brief  council  was  held, 
from  which  I  was  excluded.  The  result  was  that 
our  camp  was  suddenly  broken  up,  and  the  trail  im- 
mediately struck  for  the  main  body  of  the  tribe, 
leaving  the  rest  of  the  needed  supplies  behind  us. 

On  our  homeward  march  we  fell  in  with  a  party 
of  Blackfeet,  who  wished  to  rob  us  of  our  ponies 
and  provisions.  After  a  short  skirmish  the  enemy 
was  driven  back,  but  continued  to  hover  on  our  trail 
in  order  to  Qnd  out  our  destination. 


'«»• 


1/ 


V 


The  Indian  Captives 


87 


A  busy  scene  presented  itself  at  the  camp  on  our 
arrivflJ.  Our  hunters  in  their  excursions  in  pursuit 
of  game  had  come  on  traces  of  the  Blacl^feet  In- 
dians, and  had  followed  the  trail  until  they  discor- 
ered  the  camp  of  a  large  war  party  which  had  eW- 
dently  come  out  with  the  intention  of  meeting  and 
driving  us  back  to  the  north  again.  A  grand  coun* 
oil  of  the  tribe  was  gathered  and  the  warriors  were 
giving  their  opinions  as  to  the  proper  course  to  be 
pursued.  Two  alternatives  presented  themselves, 
One  was  to  go  back  to  the  snows  and  starvation  of 
the  northern  winter,  and  the  other  to  meet  the  rp 
posing  Blackfeet  and  endeavor  to  force  our  .  v 
through  them  to  the  hunting  pounds  fiarther  uoi  r 
There  was  a  general  disposition  to  take  the  H>  ^ 
course,  and  several  chiefs  made  stirring  %PW  -■  ^ 
the  pride  and  vengeance  of  the  warriors.  The  nu- 
merous battles  with  the  Blackfeet  in  former  years  ^ 
were  referred  to,  and  the  blood  of  the  slain  invoked 
to  stir  up  the  hearts  of  the  warriors  to  revenge.  ^ 
Finally  one  of  the  chiels  sprang  to  his  feet  and  com- 
menced ehanting  an  account  of  his  warlike  deeds, 
and  boasted  of  iirhat  he  would  do  in  the  approach- 
ing fight.  Whilst  he  sang  he  danced  around  in  a 
circle,  stamping  fiercely  on  the  ground  at  every  step. 
Every  now  and  then  he  stopped  to  raise  his  war-cry. 

In  a  few  minutes  another  warrior  spxmg  up  and 
joined  the  dance  and  song,  to  the  music  of  a  small 
drum  and  rattle.  Then  another  and  another  leaped 
up,  until  all  the  fighting  men  of  the  tribe  signined 
their  intention  of  attacking  the  enemy.  During  the 
dance  the  utmost  excitement  existed,  and  the  pierc- 
ing yells  worked  the  warriors  up  to  mad  frenzy. 
Knives  and  tomahawks  were  waved  in  h\\\  and  all 
the  movements  of  fighting  and  scalping  un  enemy 
gone  through  with. 


'Is 


l'  ?  .   ■ 

Matthew  iBtaytoHf 


Ke!it  day  a  large  war  party  set  out  in  the  diitction 
of  the  Blaokfeet  otiiibp.  I  ac^bmpamed  thie  barter. 
In  a^l^ort  time  we  struck  tbe  trail  of  one  of  their 
baiDids/and  followed  it  ttp  till  ei'^mnsr,  when  we 
^iscoyered  ourselvesin  the  vicinity  of  the  eneniy's 
tamp.  A  hnrried  council  was  held,  and  it  was  de- 
tided  to  conceal  onrselTcis 'in' the  woods  until  mohi- 
Ibg,  and  make  the  atteek  at  sunrise.  After  placing 
Bentinels  to  keep  w^kfh  of  t3ie  camp,  bnr  party  lay 
dotnl  among  the  brash  ^iA  waited  for  day. 

At  the  first  dairn  of  day  we  t^ere^all  awake  ^nd 
ij^r^eping  stealthily 'towards  the  ed^e  of  the  wood, 
beyoM  which  tlie  cainp  was  pitched.  As  we  near- 
<ed  the  openmg  the  Blaekfeet  discorered  our  approach 
and  raised  kn  alarm.  In  an  instant  there  was  great 
confusion  in  the  camp,  and  their  warriors  were  rush- 
hig  backwards  and  forwards,  Snatching  up  tbeir 
weapons  and  attempting  to  seek  a  place  of  shelter 
frpsd  the  comb^  attack. 

At  this  moment  our  war  chief  blew  a  blast  on  a 
Thorn  carried  by  him,  and  at  the  signal  a  volley  of 
shot  alid  arrows  was  fired  into  the  camp.  Several 
61  the  Blaekfeet  were  filled  and  wounded,  and  the 
others  rail  to  the  woods  for  protection.  Some  o;f  our 
#anfior8  dashed  into  the  open|ng/eut  down  the 
#OMded  and  rapidly  scalped  th<^m,  raising  a  terri- 
ble War  whoop  as  each  bloody  scalp  was  snatched 
'  $^  the  head  of  the  prostrate  foe.  As  soon  as  the 
liirk  was  done  they  again  sought  the  protection  of 
^»  trees. 

ih^  fight  was  now  conducted  from  behind  the 

ii^^d  every  one  fought  after  his  own  fashion. — 
fiSisetimes  one  iside  appeared  togaib  the  advantage, 
and  then  the  fortune  would  chfi.nge.  Houb  p|M»ed 
away,  and  both  parties  were  very  muoh  seattlred, 
but  the  Blaekfeet  were  generall^^  in  retrekt.    Ailast 


The  fndian  Oaptvoe^ 


f 


I 


9 


they  broke  up  and  fled,  when  our  warriors  retuniedv 
plundered  the  canip  of  what  little  was  hh  !iiit,'aiid 
took  the  trail  homewards.  iL^  tiuidll^r  of  soaips 
were  borne  nonie  in  triuiiiph. 

Three  captives  were  tnjwn  and  their  arms  tied 
firmly  to  their  sides,  after  whioh  they  were  drh^n 
before  us  to  the  camp.  On  arriving  there  the  party 
was  received  with  shouts  ol  triumph,  and  the  women 
and  children  made  ai  tremendous  n^^tee.  Some  of 
the  squaws  who  had  lost  husbands  in  battle  dame 
up  to  the  captives  and  loaded  tl^em  with  insults  and 
abuse,  shaking  their  fists  in  the  faces  of  the  victims 
and  acting  like  mad  women.  The  captives  remain- 
ed perfectly  indifferent  to  these  insults,r  and  made 
ikO  sign  of  being  aware  ^at  the  women  were  in  ex- 
^istence.         :    r  ^  '■:-7   ••-.•-■'•• 


« ..! 


When  the  party  entered  the  camp,  the  prisoners 
wdte  tied  to  different  posts.  The  warriors  then  in* 
dulged  in  a  great  rejoicing.  "  Snakyeye  "  or  whis- 
ky was  brought  out  and  drank.  The  warriors 
boasted  of  their  deeds  in  battle  and  divided  the  cap- 
tives. Then  they  sprang  up  in  a  wild  dance,  and 
menaced  the  captives  with  their  knives  and  toma- 
hawks. One  of  the  Blackfeet  replied  in  contempt- 
uous words  to  the  taunts  of  the  Copper- Heads, 
which  so  exasperated  them  that  several  of  the  lattei? 
at  once  rushed  to  the  posts  and  tomahawked  two  of 
the  captiyes.  The  third  was  saved  by  a  chkf  of 
our  tribe,  who  proposed  that  he  should  b^  biar|l^ 
instead  of  tomahawked. 

This  proposal  met  with  favor,  and  preparations 
were  at  once  made  for  carrying  it  into  execution, 
\Vopd  was  brought  and  piled  up  around  the  yietim 
until  it  ascended  above  his  knees.  He  was  thelt 
^^ei^ted  by  decicriptions  of  tilie  horrible  lufferingt 


!•  MaUhivi  Brayt0n, 

tiiatr  he  was  to  endure,  but  the  threats  failed  to 
diake  his  constancy  in  the  least 

As  scon  as' all  the  preparations  were  complete,  a 
large  number  of  wamors  and  squaws  encircled  the 
Tictim  and  commenced»a  wild  dance.  Fire  was  ap- 
plied to  the  pile,  and  in  a  few  moments  the  flames 
ascended  around  the  body  of  the  captive  Blackfoot. 
He  commenced  chanting  a  deathsong,  and  did  not 
stop  till  lifeNras  extinct.  The  dvice  was  kept  up 
around  the  stake  until  the  body  was  consumed, 
when  a  yell  was  given  aiid  the  assemblage  dispersed 
to  their  lodges. 

Next  day  another  council  was  held,  and  it  was 
decided  not  to  go  any  farther  to  the  south,  but  to 
T^tum  and  get  through  the  winter  as  ^rell  as  possi- 
ble in  a  territory  where  we  should  be  out  of  the 
Blaokfeet  rauffe.  Accordingly  our  tents  were  struck 
and  packed,  ue  ponies  bfuled,  and  we  once  mate 
took  the  northward  trail. 


.M" 


Th$  Indian  Oaptwe. 


41 


CHAPTER  VII. 

MATTHEW  BRATTON'S  NARRATIVB. 

Marries  the  Chief  ^s  Daughter^- TaUo&ing'^Pack' 
ing  for  the  SoiUh^  Camping  Out—^  Creiasing  the 
Mountains — Skirmish  with  Blackfeet-^  Wound" 
4d—  The  Bed  River  Settlements* 

The  fact  that  the  traders  at  the  Hudson  Baj 
Company's  post  had  claimed  me  to  be  of  white  birth, 
was  commimicated  to  the  principal  chief  after  the 
war  exeitement  of  the  latter  was  over,. and  eaased 
considerable  anxiety  on  his  part  Nothing  was  said 
to  me  about  it,  bat  I  could  see  that  the  old  chMf 
feared  my  escape,  an^that  the  tribe  wonldJ|B  matte 
to  «nffer  some  punishment  at  the  hands  of  IHMj^ites 
for  my  captivity.  I  had  always  conaiderit  niyiielf 
as  an  Indian  captured  from  some  other  tribe,  aad 
could  not  yet  think  it  posaible  that  I  was  one  of  ^e 
pale  faces. 

With  the  return  of  Summer  the  tr^e  agadn  Mi|glit 
the  NoHhem  regions,  and  I  had  almost  forgott^ 
the  aft  JT  at  the  trading  post.  The  dd  chief,  O-^ 
wash-kah-ke-naw*  appeared  to  have  taken  a  great 
liking  to  me,  and  in  September  o#that  yea?  (1^51) 
he  gave  me  his  youngest  daughter,  Tefitmia.  (Tune 
Deer)  to  be  my  squaw.  She  was  than  luaeteili, 
and  fr'handsome  Indian  woman.  My  otvn  name  in 
Copper  Head  language  is  Owah  owahkifthme-wah. ' 
By  this  squaw  I  have  two  children,  Tefroni^  a  girl 
BOW  over ^ve  yean  of  age,  and  Tululee,  a  clover 
two  years  qH* 


After  marrying  his  daughter  I  was  kept  by  the 
old  chief  around  the  village,  and  was  not  allowed  to 
join  any  expeditions  in  the  lower  country.    Three 

Sears  passed  in  this  manner,  and  my  girl  was  bom. 
!he  tribe  once  more  moved  farther  south,  and  the 
old  chief  become  anxfoos  about  my  being  claimed 
by  the  whites.  One  day  he  told  me  that  if  I  went 
south  with  the  tribe  I  must-  be  tattooed,  so  that  I 
eould  be  iiemtified  by  them  in  case  I  should  -be  car- 

iried  off  by  the  traders  .under  pretence  that  I  was  of 
white  parentage.  I  did  not  consent  to  this,  but  was 
then  told  that  there  was  no  choice  left  me,  as  it  was 
the  will  of  the  chief  that  it  should  be  done. 

N«xt  day  I  was  seized  by  two  men  Of  the  tribe 
and  made  to  lie  on  my  bac^  along  a  log.  I  was  next 
bound  down  so  that  I  could  nether  move  my  head, 
bodar,  hands  or  feet.  My  breast  was  bared,  and  one 
of  toe  Indians  came  forward  to  do  the  work  of  tattoo- 

.ing. 

Flill^e  took^a  sharp  knife  and  made  some  light 
inoylii  down  my  breast,  so  that  small  strips  of 
•kin  wei«  cut.  These  he  peeled  df  {«ad  threw  on 
one  side.  My  agony  was  intense,  but  Ivdid  not 
wish  to  be  considered  a  coward,  so  I  held  my  tongue, 
ti^pigh  the  pain  made  me  bite  my  lips  till  the  blood 
oame;  other  similar  strips  were  next  taken  off  at  the 
distance  of  about  ais^och,  but  parallel  with  the  first 
maiks.     I  now  suffered  tortuves  and  was  racked 

'  i4t^  ian  intea8#  Mrat.  The  attendant  Indians 
bnmght  me  water  and  poured  it  into  my  month  and 

.ovet  my  head  to  keep  me  from  fSamting.    . 

#4HraUd  strips  were  now  cut  at  right  angles  to  the 
irst  inciiidns,  and  then  otiier  strips  at  right  aqgles 
to  the  tecond  series  of  cuts.  Some  other  incfeions 
were  also  made,  but  by  this  time  I  ;|ffu»  almost  inaen- 
flble  ^poin.    During  these  operatlesg  *  smooth 


s 


s 

t( 

P 

^e 

B( 

c 

81 
P 

m 
$ 

m 


The  Mdian  CapHve. 


48 


the 

glM 

io&B 


stone  had  been  remaining  in  a  strong  fire,  and  as 
the  marks  were  all  ent  the  atone  was  taken  np  and 
applied  to  my  lacerated  breast.  The  pain  for  the 
moment  was  maddening,  but  the  effect  was  to  sear 
the  wounds  and  stop  tlM  bleeding.  I  was  now  re- 
leased from  my  fastenings,  and  sought  my  lodge, 
with  marks  on  my  breast  that  I  still  carry,  and  Shall 
to  my  dying  day. 

After  this  time  I  was  allowed  to  go  with  the  rest 
of  the  trib.  in  the  excursions  to  the  southern  part 
of  the  territory  over  which  we  ranged.  About  two 
years  since  I  joined  the  half  yearly  train  that  left  for 
the  Selkirk  settlement  on  the  Bed  Biver  and  for  St. 
Paul's. 

As  I  stated  before,  this  train  starts  twice  a  year,— 
m  the  Spring  and  Fall,  laden  with  fnrs,  andbj^gg 
back  supplies  of  various  kinds.  The  journey  occu- 
pies about  six  ''moons"  each  way,  and  one  ''moon" 
is  allowed  for  stoppage  at  St  Paul's,  so  that  the 
trains  meet  about  half  way  on  the  journey.  A  large 
number  of  Indians  trayel  in  these  trains  so  as  to 
iBght  their  way  down  incase  of  resistance  by  hostile 
Indians. 

Previous  to  smarting  on  the  jonmeyi  a}l  the  i||k 
skins,  and  other  articles  intended  to  be  taken  dejra, 
together  with  dried  meats  for  the  journey^  w^te 
packed  in  readiness  to  be  carried  by  ponies  asd 
elks,  or  by  the  squaws  in  the  manner  idrea^y  de- 
scribed. When  everything  was  ready,.a  grand 
Oouncil  was  held;  at  which  the  old  meq  of  tlie  t^be 
sat  around  the  council  fire,  smoking  their  pipes  in 
^  silence.  Then  the  principal  chief  arose  a^  ap- 
pointed one  of  the  subordinate  chieft  t&  the  de- 
mand of  the  party,  giving  him  in  a  few  w<»f<At  MM 
ge&eral  instructions  relative  to  the  pi#^to  be 
'i4^>te&iii/ii«Blinf  wit^  tii^witoi,  «D#^«iioMlig 


44 


Matthew  Brdyton, 


the  warriors  attached  to  the  party  to  drive  from  the 
face  of  the  earth  all  who  should  oppose  their  pro- 
gress Fai'ticalar  charge  was  given  that  I  shoald 
be  kept  away  from  the  whites  as  much  as  possible, 
•  and  watch  kept  ihat  I  might  not  be  stolen  from  them 
by  the  pale  faces. 

The  old  chief  sat  down,  and  the  newly  appointed 
chief  of  the  expedition  rose  and  made  a  speech,  as 
did  some  others  of  the  tribe.  Then  there  were 
some  dances,  after  which  the  Council  broke  up  and 
all  retired  to  their  lodges. 

Early  next  morning  >he  party  set  out  on  their 
.  journey.  The  ponies  and  elks  were  loaded  with 
packS)  the  squaws  carried  some  articles  attached  to 
the  straps  passed  across  their  forehead,  and  the  men 
rode  or  walked  in  single  file.  The  journey  was  long 
and  tedious,  day  after  day  passing  with  but  few  in- 
'  cidents  to  change  the  monotony  of  our  progress. 
Hunting  parties  started  ofif  occasionally  in  pursuit 
of  game  for  the  support  oS*  the  band,  and  met  at 
appointed  places,  but  the  main  body  kept  advanc- 
ing steadily  in  the  one  direction. 

Only  four  hours  was  allowed  for  sleep,  when  fires 

tire  lit  and  we  all  lay  around  in  our  blankets,  with 
r  feet  to  the  fire,  and  heads  outward.  There  are 
two  reasons  for  adopting  this  mode  of  sleeping :  it 
Heeps  the  feet  warm,  which  is  v«ry  important,  and  it 
allows  more  people  to  sleep  around  one  fire  than 
liquid  be  possible  iii  liny  other  position.  On  stop- 
:pug  ^r  sleep  the  ponies  were  hobbled  in  such  a 
nit^nrier  that  they  could  feed  or  sleep,  but  could  not 
run  away.  Sentinels  were  posted  to  prevent  the. 
camp  being  surprised  either  by  wild  animals  or  by 
l^stile  Indians. 

vf  JlS  soon  as  the  time  was  up  the  signal  was  given 
•Qd  Uie  whole  camp  was  spdedtljr  awake  and  itady 


The  Indian  Captive, 


46 


for  reBuming  the  journey.  A  hasty  meal  was  des- 
patched, and  then,  after  determining  the  coarse  to 
be  taken,  the  band  set  forward.  There  were  no 
fixed  hoars  for  meals,  and  no  stoppages  for  that 
purpose,  but  each  person  took  a  piece  of  dried  meat 
whenever  he  become  hungry,  and  gnawed  away  as 
he  felt  disposed. .  * 

The  country  through  which  vre  passed  changed 
from  dense  forests  to  barren  pUins,  and  then  again 
to  rolling  prairies,  high  hills,  and  grassy  viEtlleys. 
When  large  streams  opposed  our  progress  there  was 
a  halt  on  the  banks,  and  preparations  ^ere  made 
for  swimming  across.*  The  packs  were  disposed  of 
so  as  not  to  be  wetted,  and  then  each/  animal,  led 
by  an  Indian,  was  brought  to  the  stream  and  swam 
across  to  the  other  side.  When  the  animals  and  their 
burdens  had  all  safely  been  got  over,  the  remaining 
men  and  squaws  plunged  in  and  swam  over.  ,The 
vei^  young  children  were  carried  on  the  backs  of 
the  swimmers,  or  floated  across  on  boards,  which 
the  mothers  pushed  before  them. 

At  the  North  Pass  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  the 
band  crossed  from  the  west  to  the  east  side.  The 
crossing  was  the  work  of  time  and  difficulty,  ^ik 
animals  and  Indians  having  to  creep  slowly  up/^ 
rugged  heights  of  the  Pass.  Sometimes  we  isere 
many  hours  making  half  a  mile  progress,  and  gt^ 
caution  was  requisite  to  prevent  serious  aceiqeiaHSi 
among  the  precipices  around  which  we  ^pt^^.  At 
times  we  wound  our  way  through  a  deep  gorges  <m 
either  side  of  which  the  enormous  walls  of  rock 
towered  far  over  head.  Then  a  toilsome  ascent 
brought  us  on  an  elevation  from  which  wie  looked 
down  on  rugged  peaks  and  deep  elefte  b^w.  lAt 
length  the  difficulties  and  dangers  of  this  i^ais  tirenl 
Qvw,  and  we  em^ged  on  the  rdling;  k^ciirto 
east  of  the  mountaios.      '. 


4» 


Mitii^i$w  Btrn^on, 


Up  to  this  time  we  had  met  with  no  hostile  lit* 
dianst  or,  at  least,  none  that  attempted  to  molest 
us.  We  were  now  in  the  territory  hanted  by  the 
Bloods  and  Blaekfeet^  aad  were;  therefore  not  with? 
out  fearsf  of  an  attach.  On  the  second  day  after 
leaving  the  Pass  I  joined  a  hunting-party  and  set 
out  in  pursuit  of  buffalo.  The  party  consisted  of 
thirty  hnntera^  all  well  armed  either  for  the  chase  or 
wari  Af  h«rd  of  bulls  was  dis'^overed  at  a  distance, 
and«  WO'  rode  quieltly  towards  them; 

As  we  rose  on  a  ridge  that  commanded  a  wide 
viewi  of  the  country^  we  became  aware  of  a  party  of 
mounted  Indians  «tno  gpreat  distance  from  us,  in 
pursuit  of  the  same  herd  of  buffalo.  They  appear* 
ed  to  hare  discovered  us  at  the  same  time,  and 
both  parties  drew  up  to  reconnoitre.  In  numbers 
both  were  nearly  equal,  and  tfaJBrei  appeared  to  be 
little  doubt  that  the  opposing  band  were  some  of 
our  old'  entoiies,  the  Blackfeet  A  short  council 
was  held  without  dismounting,  andtfaere  was  a  ques- 
tion as  to  the  policy  of  fightingithem  on  1i>e  spot,. 
er  of  fisiliing  bach  on  the  main  tft>dy  and  keeping 
preparedi  for  the  larger  band  of  Blackfeet  that  prob^ 
si>lyi]iqr  in  olirs  coarse  towards  the^  Selkirk  settle^ 
Biintb: 

Tii^qneBttoiWift  seitib^  witiiout  farther  disens* 
fkm^oB  oui^  paitf  by  the  appeaeanoe  of  the  Black* 
fte^'gattoping  towards  us.  Our;  pai^y  dashed  for** 
tsshrd  to  nifeet  them#^  and  as  thetwio  bancto  neaved 
each  'Oiftierr  rapid  diseharges  oi  \  ballets^  and* arrowfii 
irevt  ttiode  by  both  sides.  I  receiTcd  a  rifts  ball  ia 
11^  nstep^  and  was*  thrown^  fisom  my  ponj:  by  a 
B^t^jiDd^.ihtA  dashed;  against  me. 
J^plo'  fi|^  waaidesperate^  and  several  scalps  w&n 
taken  Otti  both  sides.:  A  Biockfooti  warrior  siti|^ 
vm  oit  iMl  oontet,  and ;  for^  aipaei<  tinw  we^  foogfafc 


■■^^      HHPIWy 


Thi§  Indian  Otipttn, 


47 


hand  to  hand.  Serere  blows  were  gtven  on  both 
si<*''8,  and  I  felt  faint  fh>m  loss  of  blood,  having  re- 
ceived a  frightfal  gash  in  the  thigh  from  a  toma- 
hawk, besides  an  ngly  knife  woand  in  one  knee  and 
in  the  calf  of  one  leg.  In  the  end  the  hostile  party 
was  repnlsedr  though  with  severe  loss  on  our  side, 
and  we  retreated  to  the  main  body  of  our  party. 

Here  my  wounds  were  found  to  be  of  sufficient 
importance  to  require  some  attention.  I  was  lashed 
to  a  log  in  order  to  prevent  my  writhing  during  the 
process  of  dressing  the  wounds.  The^gashes  were 
then  cleaned  out  and  washed  with  water.  Some 
kinnikenick  bark  was  chewed  up  and  mixed  with 
tobacco,  which  was  then  put  into  the  wound  to  stop 
the  bleeding.  The  washing  and  dressing  was  re- 
peated until  the  bleeding  had  completely  stopped. 
One  of  the  men  took  a  thin  buckskin  thong  and 
sewed  up  the  wounds  by  piercing  the  skin  and  rua- 
ning  the  thong  tborough  it  Only  two  stitches  were 
made  for  eaeh  igteh.  The  pain  of  this  opemioa 
ws«  intense,  laid  was  more  difibult  to  bear  than  the 
original  wonncte.  The  imriEB  of  the  stitdiei  vb» 
sUlI  visible  on  my  person.  # 

Whether  the  defeat  of  this  smaller  party  of  Black'* 
feet  had  discouraged  tbe  larger  band,  or  whitbtr 
there  was  no  large  party  in  the  neig]iboriBK>od  atlbat 
time,  I  cannot  teU,  but  it  was  certain  that  w»  vera 
not>galn  trdubled  with  them  during  oar  Jonm^. 
OeeaJUOiMtHiy  a  strltggling  hunter  or  two  would  \m 
Mim,  but  tbely  idwi^s  made  off  bef<»e  wxjf  of  aiir 
wml^loirs  douM  Teach  them.  ^      ! 

We  hflid  now  reached  the  hunting  ipmaSduM  ^te 
SeHitjEors,  m  colonists  of  English,  ficotch^:  ViMsh 
affid'hadf  bre^s,  who  lived  ^m  4be  t^itog^tgnaiilBd. 
to  Lord  Selkirk  Ibr  the  pnatpose = of  eitabftihtilg  ^i^ 
cotonj^there.    The  land  Cram  tha  Eot^  MdaAtstinft 


41 


Matthew  Brayton^ 


to  the  Red  RWer  is  pleasmt  to  look  at,  and  fioh 
with  game  of  all  kinds.  BnfRilo,  deer,  and  smaller 
fl^ame,  range  in  great  nnmbers  over  the  plains,  and 
tilie  hanters  and  trappers  of  the  Selkirk  colony  are 
scattered,  in  the  season,  in  all  directions  o?er  this 
splendid  territory.  Soon  after  getting  into  this 
country  we  fell  in  with  some  trappers  who  were  re- 
turning to  the  settlements,  and  they  trareled  with 
our  train  as  far  as  we  went  in  their  direction. 

In  the  course  of  our  journey  with  them,  they  no- 
ticed my  appearance  and  spoke  to  me  of  my  resem- 
blance to  whites,  even  though  disguised  with  paint 
as  I  was.  They  became  interested  in  me  and  taught 
me  several  words  of  Bnglish,  which  I  learned  very 
rapidly. 

On  reaching  the  Selkirk  settlements  we  camped 
for  a  few  days  in  order  to  rest  awhile  before  striking 
the  Red  River  trail,  and  to  do  a  little  trading  with 
#M  telttiers.  Here  the,  traders  who  had  been  teach- 
imjfme  English  told  some  of  the  other  whites  about 
wntp  and  I  was  visited  by  several  Selkirkers.  After 
eonversbg  with  me  for  some  time  they  summoned 
the  cbiiP ,  and  charg^  the  tribe  with  having  stolen 
me  when  a  child  from  the  whites.  He  denied  it, 
bw^the  Selkirkers  became  more  determined  in  their 
BQS^ii&QfiSy  and  demanded  that  1  should  be  given  up 
to  tflMm,  threatening  to  take  npe  by  force  if  not  sur- 
reiMtoed,  peaceably.  I  was  afipealed  to  as  to  what 
m  #ii^  were  on  the  subject;  So  much  had  been 
md  iie  lir|r>  the  traders  about  my.  having  probably 
beipi  ^1^  from  .my  white  pareike,  that  I  had  be- 
00^  am^om  to  know  something  about  the  facts, 
ahd  I  ibuddy  said  so.  On  this  the  Selkirkers  be^ 
came  more  eager  to  have  me  left  with  them,  but  our 
chief  ^isuadad  me  from  consenting,  by  represealing 
that  I  had  no  doe  to  my  parents,  even  if  jt  wat 


J 


Th4  Miian  Captio$. 


it 


trne  that  I  bad  been  stolen  from  the  whites  bat  that 
if  I  reamed  to  the  tribe,  I  could  nndoabtedly  get 
part  of  iny  history  from  the  old  chief,  who  woald 
also  probably  give  me  leave  to  go,,  la  case  I  chose 
to  hant  op  my  family.  With  wis  I  wai  conteiiti 
and  the  Selkirkers  let  me  go  after  exacting  a  solemn 
promise  from  the  ehief  and  principal  warriors  that  I 
should  be  allowed ,  to  proceed  in  search  of  my 
parents  if  I  felt  disposed  to  do  so. 


f 


■c 


iii 


'%-.■ 


i'*' 


d» 


Matthew  Braytem, 


OHAPTEB  VllL 


u 


f 


MATTHEW  BBAYTON'S  NABRATITB. 

geltirk  People — Selkirk  Tfins^"  Trading  at  St 
Paul — Return  to  the  North. 

With  the  dawn  of  day  we  again  set  forward  on 
oar  jonmey,  taking  the  Red  Ri^er  trail  towards  St. 
Panl.  The  trip  between  the  Selkirk  settlements  and 
St.  Paul  ocenptes  fron  thTrty  to  forty  days,  and 
passes  through  the  battle  ground  of  the  Sionxs  and 
Ohippewas.  Several  times  we  came  on  small  par- 
ties of  the  Sionxs,  bat  had  no  more  Ihan  short  skir- 
mishes with  them,  oar  numbers  being  too  formida- 
ble for  them  to  attack  us.  About  two  day^  jonr- 
Bey  flrom  the  Selkirk  settlements  we  came  to  the 
settlement  of  Oshftwkapee,  inhabited  by  French  and 
half  breeds.  From  this  point  we  passed  oyer  a 
■ttgnlfieeBt  rolling  country  interspersed  with  occa- 
^aki  woods  and  watered  by  several  streams. 

Whilst  crossing  this  country  we  met  the  Red  RiTcH" 
wttiement  train  returning  from  th^r  trading  jour- 
Boy  to  St.  Paul.  The  train  was  composed  of  four 
•r  irehandred  ox  carts  in  single  file»  with  drirers 
OD  foot,  or  riding  on  the  wragons,  hunters  and  guards 
mounted  ob  poales,  and  woBien  and  children  riding 
with  camp  fixtures  in  coTered  wagons. 

The  Selkirkers'  wagons  are  of  a  peculiar  kind, 
BO  iron  being  used  in  any  part  of  their  constnul- 
tion.    There  is  but  one  pair  of  wheels,  having  fel- 


'^m 


J 


\ 


■''t/ 


'^*^ 


t 

t 
d 
d 
d 
r- 
f- 
a- 
r- 
le 
id 
a 

Ei- 

P- 

ir 
rs 


% 


y 


Ipes  about  six  inches  thick.    TImjM  are  aboat  foar* 
teeo  spolces  to  a  wheel,  and  the8e%|K>kes  ar^  abotit 
three  reet  long.    The  li^h  pine,  axles,  aod  in  fact 
every tbtng  ab'oajb  the  cartel  are  of  wood,  very  mpiHr. 
flive  and  eambrbos.    No  grease  is  used  on  the  axlei, 
•o  that  an  incessant  groAnCpg  and  ereaUng  is  kept 
up.    the  body  of  the  cart  is  nothing  btt  a  frame 
work  similar  to  the  woodrackf  ttsed  in  the  lowei^ 
country.    Sometimes  a  tilt  coferihg  is  used  for  the 
wagons  that  carry  the  women  and  childifen.    Bach 
cart  is  drawn  hj  one.  ox  fi^tened  to  the  tUtifU  by 
ilraps  of  raw  hide,    One  mail  %»&  change  of  five 
Vagons,  a  strap  nassing  frpm  the  tail  dfbne  wagon' 
\)Yer  the  horns  or  the  ox  drawing  the  wagon  imme- 
diately following  It    When  the  driver  whips  the^ 
first  ox  it  starts  fprwar^  and  the  oxen  in  the  squad 
of  carts  attached  to  the  moving  wagon  hgaVd  to^ 
etart  at  the  same  time. 

The  drivers  of  these  trains  l^e  mixed  French  Oa*' 
nadians,  English,  Scotch  and  half  breedis.  In  moirt 
cases  the  wom»n  are  Indiane,  and  these  travel  Uritli; 
the  train  to  do  the  cooking  and  general  Urork  Of  tbe 
camp.  When  they  camp  for  the  night  they  brln|p 
all  the  wagons  into  a  close  ein|||i#lth  the;  nhnflfc| 
outwards.  Immediately  insideW  this  cirde  tmm 
ox  is  tied  to  the  cart  to  which  it  belongs,  and  witlhin 
this  innei^  oicle  of  cattle  the  ponies  are  piek^Kkedi 
The  tents  are  then  pitched  within  the  whole,  utMi 
iiels  phioed,  and  the  camp  Composed  to  sleep; 

fijljkhitations  were  exchanged  with  the  Seiyr|cen* 
train  as  wd  passed,  and  our  journey  #a8iiigli|i|W 
euiaed.    At  length  we  Arrived  lit  our  villegeWuKn 
d'^tancefrom  St.  Ahthoiiy,  and  here  t^t^^initidn 
were  m^de  for  stayidg  one  month,  4^^|?  irli^  tfi 


rP 


X 


6S 


Matffuw  SrayUm, 


In  this  time  oa^rs  ftnd  skins  were  taken  down 
to  St.  Paul,  and,  by  means  of  our  interpreter  were 
traded  fbr  whiskey,  powder,  rifles,  provisions  of 
yarions  kinds,  weapons,  and  snch  other  articles  ti^ 
were  needed  by  ns.  DnrinjK  these  tradings  I  prac- 
ticed myself  in  speaking  English,  and  conldsoon 
talk  so  as  to  make  myself  understood.  I  held  some 
conversations  with  the  settlers,  and  become  more 
anxious  to  discover  the  facts  in  relation  to  my  sup- 
posed parentage.  I  determined  that  as  soon  as  I 
went  back  I  would  demand  my  history  from  the  old 
chief,  and  if  I  could  obtain  any  trace  from  him,  I 
would  then  prosecute  the  search  after  my  parents. 

When  the  trading  was  over  and  the  supplies 
brought  back  to  the  catnp,  there  was  a  grand  feast 
given,  and  the  camp  became  a  scene  of  drunken 
debauchery  for  several  days.  Whiskey  was  drunk 
in  giieat  quantities,  aod  many  quarrels  took  place 
between  the  men.  M^  they  had  taken  the  precau- 
tion of  putting  away  their  weapons  before  the  drink- 
ing began,  no  one  wias  killed  in  the  quarrels. 

At  length  our  time  was  up,  the  Indians  got  over 
their  debMch,  and  everything  was  made  ready  for  the 

flum  trip.  Wegpre  soon  on  our  way,  and  march- 
g  wilh  our  fBJcei%  t}^  North. 
The  journey  to  our  northern  headquarters  had  no 
particular  incident  to  interest  me,  my  mind  being  now 
foil  of  Uie  idea  that  I  had  white  relatives  and  friends, 
and  that  the  savage  life  I  had  led  for  so  many  years 
was  not  the  one  for  which  I  was  bom.  I  longed  to 
reach  our  village  once  more,  that  I  might  question 
the  old  chief  as  to  my  history.  At  last  we  reached 
the  main  body  of  our  tribe.  I  was  rejoiced  to  meet 
my  Tefronia  and  the  children  once  ircie,  bat  at  the 
same  time  a  new  feeling  had  entered  my  breast.  I 
waited  impatiently  two  or  three  days  until  the  re- 


y 


I., 


\ 


\ 


The  IniMan  CapHve, 


58 


joicings  cftiised  by  onr  retarn  sbould  have  passed 
away,  and  then  I  sought  out  the  venerable  chief, 
O'Wash-kah-ke^naw,  now  oVer  eighty  years  old,  and" 
begged  him  to  tell  me  truly  the  secret  of  my  birth. 

For  some  time  the  chief  bade  me  go  back  to  my 
lodge  and  be  content  with  what  1  already  knew,  but» 
finding  that  I  was  resolute  in  discovering  the  facts, 
he  told  me  to  await  a  few  days  in  patience,  and  then 
he  would  give  his  decision.  I  returned  to  my  lodge 
in  much  agitation,  for  it  was  evident  that  the  chief 
knew  something  that  had  hitherto  been  concealed 
from  me.  I  had  been  so  long  accustomed  to  savage 
life  that  I  remembered  no  other. 

A  council  of  the  leading  chiefs  only  called  on  the 
following  day,  which  I  rightly  considered  was  to 
consult  on  the  course  to  be  pursued  in  respect  to  my 
demand.  At  last  I  was  summoned  before  the  great 
chief  and  a  few  leading  warriors,  and  was  instructed 
as  to  the  course  allotted  for  me. 

I  was  then  informed  that  when  a  child  I  had  been 
stolen  from  the  whites  by  a  band  of  Canadian  In- 
diatis  who  had  by  this  course  revenged  themselves 
on  the  whites  for  some  real  or  fancied  wrongs ;  that 
I  had  passed  through  the  hands  of  several  tribes  and 
had  at  last,  as  I  already  knew,  been  sold  by  the 
Siouxs  to  the  Snakes,  and  remained  with  them  until 
their  anion  with  the  Copper  Heads.  The  decision 
of  the  head  men  of  the  tribe  was  that  I  should  join 
the  train  about  to  set  out  out  for  the  settlements, 
and  should  then  proceed  in  company  with  a  few 
picked  warriors,  to  visit  the  remnants  of  the  tribes 
in  whose  possession  I  had  once  been,  in  order  to 
learn  more  of  my  former  history.  At  the  same  time 
I  was  sworn  to  return  to  the  tribe  within  a  year  af- 
ter I  left  the  train  at  St.  Paul,  and  to  ensure  the 
fulfilment  of  this*  condition,  my  wife  and  ehildren 


H. 


Jlf0hf>w  3f§}{tpn^ 


were  jto be, rcitMi^d tn  t^e  ol4: chief 'sfamilv  at  the 
hea4^nai;tejrs  of  the  tribe.  Tp  t^ese  conmtibiis  t 
freely,  cquseat^p;  aQd  waited  eagei^lj  for  tlie  daj 
when  1 9hpald  set  oat  on  m;  joorney. 

At  lai^  the  day  arrifiedi  and  I  took  a  farewell  of 
my  wife:  and  ^ehiidren.  Th^  thoaght  of  them  checks 
ed  little  a  my  eagerness >9  set  oatr  butt  at  length  I 
left  1  them,  fi^lly  intending  to  retarn  as  soon  as  I; 
coold  disco? er  sonojethtag  of  my  former  history. 


J 


ec 
m 
th 

ai 

tc 

tl 

in 

tl] 

at 

ei 

si 

a 

cl 
fu 
w 


a^ 


o! 


1  of 

5Ck- 

IS  li 


J 


Th$  Mtinh  C%ftte. 


m 


CHAPTER  IX. 


M 


<.. 


iiiTTHEW,  BBATTON'S  VAXSJLttvM, 

Return  to  St.  Paul^Sick  at  Chicago — Sets  owi  Iri 
Search  of  hu  Parents — Meaches  Cleveland-^ 
Gets  hw  Story  Printed-^Visiia  Warren^  O— 
Attends  Camp  Meeting-^Exjperiences  Beligion^-^ 
Reaches  Sugar  Orove, 

The  snows  of  winter  had  began  to  fall  wheni,  oar 
pftrty  set  odt  on  the  roate  I  had  so  receatij  travel- 
ed. The  pret^ent  compiihy  was  'pliiujed  andeir  com* 
mand  of  ii  son  of  the  principal  chief,  he  bieing  alsd 
the  brother,  of  Mj  Wif<^.  Ttier^is  ho  reaton  for* 
again  descHbin^  the  ronte,  as  we  traveied  in  th% 
same  trail  that  we  parsued  with  the  former  pH^rty, 
and  this  time  there  were  no  incidents  of  conseqttonei6 
to  diversify  tjhe  monotohy  of  the  progn^ss.  Abdul 
the  beginnin^g  of  April,  1S69,  wer(giehedonreamp« 
ing  groaqd  near  St.  AhXhotjf  and  on,  the  tenth  of 
that  month  I  arrived  jwith  a  detachment  of  the  trilji 
at.l^.  Panl.  We  remained  ^ere  a  few  days,  itaJ^I^ 
enqairies  of  the  Sion±s  and  ChippeiKrais  tl^t  6c<^li« 
sionally  can^e  in  lo  trade,  and  from  tb^  1  bbtaitieil 
a  cine  to  farther  dfiicoveri^. 

Oh  the  iSth  of  Apnl  I  obtitltied  leave  firdm  th^ 
chief  to  set  oat  on  Investlgatipiis,  (yriomti^tig  f^ftlt* 
fully  to  return  to  St.  Paul  in  Joly,  wh^n  the  ^k^ 
would  be  ready  t6  retarb. 

T!o  aid  me  In  rAj  redelarches  I  was  acbo^|Hitticid  part ' 
of  fhe  wiy  By  the  ciMef  hiliuielt  abd  sdine  liilBflibers 


50 


McMew  Brayton, 


sit'' 


v~ .  / 


of  the  tribe,  and  our  party  was  fhrnished  with  three 
ponies  and  five  dogs.  In  pnrsaance  to  the  informa- 
tion obtained  from  the  Sionxs  and  Ohippewas,  we 
proceeded  in  search  of  a  party  of  Winnebagoes 
said  to  be  located  in  Northern  Wisconsin.  After 
traveling  some  days  days  we  reached  the  Wisconsin 
river,  and  followiqg  it  towards  its  source  came  on 
the  Winnebagoes,  who  were  making  sugar  in  the 
woods.  From  them  I  obtained  the  particulars  of 
my  purchase  by  them  from  the  Paw  Paws,  and  was 
"directed  to  a  family  yet  living  in  Michigan  who 
conld  probably  give  me  some  ^her  information. 

Filled  with  hope  I  started,  in  company  with  my 
brother-in-law  and  the  other  Indians,  for  Chicago. 
We  traveled  through  the  woods  (\nd  across  thecoun- 
try,  I  acting  as  interpreter^  being  now  able  to  speak 
English  wim  tolerable  proficiency.  Before  reaching 
that  city  I  was  taken  sick,  and  on  arriving  there  I 
€eU  into  the  hands  of  tome  sympathizing  persons 
who  placed  me  i^der  medical  care.  My  escort, 
finding  that  I  had  become  so  sick  that  I  could 
neither  prosecute  my  researches  for  some  time,  nor 
return  with  them,  quitted  me  and  returned  to  St. 
Paal,  leaving  me  only  my  faithful  dog,  Nawah. 

X  w|8  very  sick  and  do  not  remember  much  for 
two  or  three  weeks,  when  I  found  myself  in  a  hos- 
pital, with  my  long  hair  cut  off  close  to  my  head, 
aad  the  paint  scrubbed  from  my  skin.  To  get  it 
off  they  had  used  hot  water,  soap  and  sand,  and  in 
the  process  had  transformed  me  from  an  Indian  to  a 
whke  man.  I  remained  in  the  hospital  for  more 
than  five  weeks,  and  then  I  was  discharged  as  emed, 
thon^  still  very  weak. 

On  letting  me  go  they  gave  me  a  suit  of  white 
men's  clot^ig  ini^^d  of  my  Indian  costume,  leuv- 
Sog  me  nothing  but  my  stone  pipe  and  my  scalping 


/ 


i 


The  Indian  Captive, 


J 


< 


knife.  Nawab  and  I  at  once  set  oat  on  our  adven- 
tares,  and  my  steps  were  directed  towards  the  place 
where  the  Paw  Paw  family  was  said  to  reside.  I 
found  them  after  walking  for  two  days,  aod  then  was 
directed  to  a  small  yilTage  of  Pottawottomies  in 
Branch  county,  Michigan.  I  walked  to  the  place 
described,  sleeping  in  the  woods  at  night  as  had 
been  customary  with  me,  but  I  soon  found  that  I 
could  no  longer  do  so^  with  safety.  With  my  long 
hair  cut  off,  and  without  my  blanket  and  furs,  I  was 
unprepared  for  camping  out.  The  result  was  that  I 
caught  a  severe  inflammation  in  my  eyes  that  in- 
creased to  an  extent  threatening  my  sight.  I  could 
no  longer  bear  the  light,  and  had  to  walk  with  my 
head  down. 

On  reaching  the  Pottowottamies  I  found  they  con- 
sisted of  four  families  and  their  chief,  Mr.  Maoowa- 
ooR.  They  had  settled  down  to  civilized  life,  and 
were  living  as  farmers.  Mr.  Macgwaoor  remem- 
bered the  whole  transaction  in  relation  to  my  pur- 
chase from  the  Canadian  Indians,  he  having  been 
present  at  the  transfer.  He  said  the  Canadian  In- 
dians had  stated  at  the  time  that  they  had  taken  me 
from  the  south  side  of  Lake  Erie,  and  that,  Urom 
their  description,  the  party  had  probably  brought 
me  from  Ohio,  as  they  spoke  of  naving  crossed  Ike 
Sandusky  river  during  the  jour&ey  on  whiek  tH^y 
fell  in  with  me. 

On  learning  this  I  set  out  for  Detroit  aodmsi^d 
over  int6  Canada,  but  without  obtaining  mnchiiic-; 
ther  information  among  the  few  seoii-civilized  In- 
dians and  half  breeds  that  I  met  with  theft.  ;  All 
I  could  gather  was  that  I  probably  been  talie&^OBi 
somewhere  in  the  vicinity  of  Cleveland. 

I  now  retraced  my  steps  to  Detroit,  and  proceed- 
ed into  Ohio,  telling  my  story  as  I  went,  and  ro- 


'ife 


d¥ 


M(M^  l^kHj^^ 


I  V 


E>  >>.'?; 


(Itle^ting:  iAfortnition.  At  Fremont  I  fell  in  with  » 
maii  woo  listened  to  my  dtory  with  ftttentton  and 
remained  that  be  hi^d  formerly  heard  of  a  family 
naniied  Tonb,  who  had  lodt  a  little  boy  froM  the 
neighborhood  of  Cleveland  a  number  of  years  ago. 
Actinjip  under  his  suggestions,  on  the  fbllo wing  day, 
I  gbton  ih^  railroad  triiin  find  cftrae  to  Cleveland, 
where  I  arrived  in  the  litter  part  of  August. 

I  wa^  ih  Cleveland  abotit  one  day,  making  en- 
quiries reliaiive  to  the  ^(tt>i>  family,  and  telling  my 
story,  bht  without  getfmg  any  information  that  was 
of  us(D.  The  TdDD  faibily  had  removed  many  yeajrs 
since,  and  I  could  not  learn  their  whereabouts.  I 
hid  begtin  to  despair  of  ever  finding  traces  of  my 
parents,  when  a  friendly  colored  man  who  had  inet 
nie  and  learned  my  story,  tobk  me  to  the  office  of 
the  Cl^ldnd  t)aily  Strald,  fait  th^  purpose  of 
telling  iny  itory  to  thd  editors.  We  suece^ed  in 
irndtl^  one  df  them,  Mr.^.  H.  A.  BoMl:,  in  the  office, 
tog^eir  with  anoiliiBr  gentleman.  I  told  my  stoiy 
t6  i^em,  aiid  liras  erbss- questioned  by  them  very 
clOfieF^.  In  the  end  I  was  directed  to  an  old  citizen 
of  the  i>laee  for  the  i^ur^e  of  making  inquiries, 
ahl^  %a8  told  to  cull  it^itin  knd  te^l  the  result. 
'  Tfie{>ierS0n  to  whM  I  was  directed  was  out  of 
tbWti,  imd  I  Mhied  nothing  further  thiit  night 
ife^al  persohs  took  icoitii'siderable  interest  in  my 
•toipy,  and  wish^<^  me  well  in  my  journcyings.  Neit 
fltornifrl  I  Wai  oil  the  street  when  I  saw  some  ftirs 
lui^  Q^er  irticles  of  Esqutmaliac  driers  at  the  door 
of  i  iHMiim,  ^oM  #te  toiid  th«t  Ik  Pandrama  «xf  tho 
Arttic  R^fons  %s;s  on  exhibiticin,  nnd  ibat  one  of 
the  men  bebngtink  ^^  it~-TB6MAift  HikittitT^had 
l^een  in  the  far  Ndith.  I  went  iip  to  see  hiib,  and 
to  ^ilh  «iid  the  |)ro|>iriie!for»  Mr.  Lik  Btri,  told  hj 
stoij. 


,/ 


< 


) 


TJu  Indian  OapHve, 


68; 


,/ 


I  then  aecompanied  Mr,  La  Rva  to  tha  office  of 
the  Heraldf  and  there  I  again  met  Mr.  Bone,  who 
made  me  repeat  my  story  and  then  printed  it  withja 
request  that  any  person  possessing  informatiop  of 
probable  use  to  the ' 'Indian  capti7«,''  would  at  once 
furnish  it. 

The  interest  taken  in  my  story  by  the  editors  of 
the  Cleviland  Herald  has;  been  the  means  of  my 
returb  to  my  relatives. 

I  remained  in  Cleveland  several  days,  and  my 
story  excited  much  interest.  Some  persons  fomish- 
ed  me  with  portions  of  dotbing  of  which  I'  stood 
in  need,  and  I  was  furnished  with  food  and  sleeping 
room  at  one  of  the  hotels.  The  people  at  the  house 
were  surprised  at  my  refiisal  to  sleep  in  a  bed  and 
to  eat  cooked  m^at  or  anything  that  had  salt  in  it, 
but  I  could  not  endure  the  method  of  eaiting  or 
sleeping  used  by  civilized  white  people.         V 

In  a  few  days  I  learned  that  some  per8<|iisK  4it 
Warren,  O.,  could  probably,  give  me  some  ioi^flll? 
tion,  and  thither;  I  went,  the  Cleveland  aud  MAhtft 
ning  Railroad  Company  taldng  me  without  JAf 
paying  fare.  Qn  arriving  there  I  foiund.  that  the 
people  to  whom  I  was  directed  had  gone  out  of 
town  to  attend  a  Camp  Meeting  in  MalK>nittg  coun- 
ty. Some  persons  going  to  the  meeting  invitod ,  me 
to  accompany  them^  and  in  th^  company  I  ai^yed 
s^theQamp  Meeting. 

A  short  time  sufficed  to  convince  me  that  Iliad 
got  on  the  wrong  track,  and  that  I  wfts  n(^  |;h« 
missing  son  of  Joseph  Todd.  Great  interest  wan, 
however,  occasioned  by  my  story,  and  mftny  qifeil? 
tions.were  piit  to:  me.  I  showed  the  Presiding  JSl*^ 
dw  papers  given  me  in  proof  of  my  belc^i^  to 
the  Indian  tribe,  and  i^lated  my  adv^tttnreSi.  li^alr* 
ly  Li^dwed  them  my  dog»  scalping  ktaliBE.a&jl  pi|^ 


60 


Matthew  Brayton, 


The  Presiding  Elder,  Mr.  Anson  Brazbx,  whs  so 
m^oh  interested  in  my  story  that  he  got  me  to  re- 
pe^  it  to  the  whole  meeting.  I  remained  with  these 
pe^le  throughout  the  meeting,  and  before  it  broke 
np,  11)ecame  thoroughly  conyinced  of  the  tmtii  of 
the  christian  religion,  and  joined  the  Ghnrch  of  the 
United  Brethren.  In  token  that  I  had  fol'ever 
abandoned  the  bloody  practices  of  heathenism,  I 
broke  mjr^Bcalping  kn^  in  two,  giving  the  handle 
and  part  if  the  blade^to  Mder  Brazie,  and  the 
other  p!«rt  of  the^'t^liMle  to  a  circuit  preacher,  the 
ReY.  William  IfplM^muB.  When  the  camp  broke 
up  I  accompanied  the  'Elder  and  some  of  the  Min- 
isters to  a  Oonference  in  Stark  county,  and  from 
thence  went  to  WilliamsiBeld,  Ashtabula,  where  I 
stayed  with  some  farmers  belonging  to  the  Church 
of  the  United  Brethren. 

After  staying  with  these  good  people  about  a 
fortnight,  I  went  to  Monroe,  Ashtabula  county,  in 
search  of  some  information  that  I  expected  to  get 
there*  but  failed  to  obttij^  anything  of  use,  I  then 
mH^pted  the  inTitation  qf  Elder  Bbazee,  and  went 
to  his  house  in  Pierpont,'  Ashtabula  county,  where 
1  stayed  a  short  time.  From  there  I  went  to  Gon- 
netttttyille,  thence  to  Olark's  Comers,  and  to  Con- 
DOfstille.  From  that  place  the  minister  sent  a  let- 
t^  to  Cleveland  stating  that  I  had  gone  into  Penn- 
sylvania, and  giving  directions  where  I  probiifa^ 
could  be  heard  of.  ^^ 

I  continued  to  wander  from  place  to  place,  where- 
eveir  the  faintest  hope  existed  of  my  getting  any 
information,  and  in  this  way  I  visited  Erie,  ^^  ater- 
ford,  Wattsburgh,  and  finally  reached  Warren,  Pa., 
where  the  Rev.  William  MoInttbe  was  stationed. 
I  remained  with  him  a  short  time  and  then  retraced 
my  steps  to  Ashtabula  county,  after  which  I  again 


The  Inaian  Captive, 


61 


80 


retained  to  Mr.  MoInttbi's  and  from  thence  went 
to  Colambas,  Pa. 

My  hopes  of  finding  my  relattves  had  now  almost 
died  out.  Nearly  six  months  had  passed,  bnt  I 
soemed  no  nearer  the  object  of  my  search  than  I  was 
when  I  left  St.  Panl.  Wearied  oat  with  fhiitless 
efifbrts,  I  had  resolved  to  make  one  more  attempt, 
and  if  that  failed,  to  abandon  the  search  for  ever  and 
retam  to  my  tribe  on  the  approach  of  Spring.  My 
eyes  remained  very  bad,  and  I  therefore  labored  nnder 
great  disadvantages,  having  to  be  careful  lest  the 
inflammation  shonld  increase  and  destroy  my  sight. 
I  h8.d  gone  to  school  for  a  few  days  in  Pennsylva- 
nia, but  the  state  of  my  eyes  compelled  me  reluc- 
tantly to  abandon  the  idea  for  the  present,  at  least. 

i'rom  Columbus  I  went  to  Sugar  Grove.  Warren 
county,  Pa. ,  close  to  the  New  York  State  line.  My 
intention  was  to  remain  there  a  day  or  two,  and 
then  set  out  for  the  Cattaraugus  Indian  Reservation 
where  I  intended  making  my  last  e£fort  at  obtaining 
information.  If  I  failed  there  I  meant  either  to  re* 
turn  to  the  Rev.  Mr  MolNTTREts  residence  and  at- 
tend school  for  the  Winter,  or  go  into  Canada  and 
remain  with  the  Indians  until  Spring,  when  it  would 
be  time  to  return  to  St.  Paul.  On  the  18th  of  No« 
vember  I  was  at  Sugar  Grove  when  Mr.  W.  T. 
SipTH,  a  farmer  living  in  New  York  State,  just 
|mi»ss  the  line,  drove  ^.p  with  his  wagon  early  In 
We  morning  to  take  me  to  his  house,  where  I  was 
to  stay  a  few  days  previous  to  leaving  for  the  Cat- 
taraugus Reservation.  I  little  dreamed,  when  I 
arrived  at  the  house,  that  the  end  of  m/  journey- 
ings  was  30  near,  and  that  the  object  of  the  search 
which  I  bad  aljiost  abandoned  in  despair  Was  al- 
ready witliin  a  few  hours  of  attainmentv 


«i  VI 


Maahew  Bfaytov, 


0HAMER  iX. 

FOUND  AT  LAST. 

/phei  iiaTtatidn  of  the  Qircnmstances  Trhich  led 
to  the  discover  J  of  MAtTHEW  Brayton  by  his 
relatives  requires  us  to  go  baick  a  little  from  the 
point  to  whicQ  his  acdbunt has  brought  the  reader. 
.    The  intervening  years  between  the  loss  of 
ItlATTBEW  Brayton  hy  his  relatives  an4  the  pres- 
ent time  have  caused  many  changes  in  the  neigh- 
borhood once  so  excited  in  concequence  of  that 
loss.    The  red  men  clung  for  many  years  to  their 
last  foothold  in  Ohio,    Four  years  after  the  loss 
of  the  boy,  the  Delawares  left  their  village  be- 
lo^  tTpper  Sandusky,  and  set  out  for  their  new 
homes  farther  West.    Two  years  afterwards  the 
Senecas  extinguished  their  council  fires  and  sought 
a  resting  place  uearer  the  Rocky  Mountains. 
But  the  W yandbtsheld  tenaciously  to  their  homes, 
and  eighteen  years  passed  away  before  they 
finally  consented  to  abandon  Ohio  to  the  exclu- 
sive occiq nation  of  the  white  race. 
4  iFine  farms  now  cover  the  site  of  the  waste  land 
aodAWOo^^s  over  and  through  which  the  weary 
kunl^ibr  *he  missing  boy  was  conducted  day  af- 
ter day.    Towns  and  villages  have  sprung  up 
where  humble  log  cabins  here  and  there  stodcK  in 
ibe  incipient  clearings,  and  the  huts  of  the  red 
skins  have  parsed  away  forever. 

Tb!$  sturdy  farmer,  Etu ah  Brayton,  who 
onco  returned  to  his  cabin  from  the  weary  jour- 
xiey  to  ChilUcothe  after  millstones,  and  was  met 
bgr  HOWS  t^t  made  the  blood  forsake  his  parental 


\ 


\ 


Th$  Mian  (kiipKv$, 

heart  in  a  sadden  rusbyhiKi  passed bj  soipe yefMra 
the  allotted  period  of  man's  life,  and  is  fast  pro- 
gressing towards  his  fourscore  years.  WiiiLiAM^ 
the  boy  of  sixteen  who  had  set  out  with  his  little 
brother  on  that  search  for  stray  cattle,  but  had 
returned  without  hinii  has  reached  Uie  meridian 
of  life,  and  sees  around  him  a  young  family 
springing  up.  Lonfl;  since,  the  paternal  cabin 
near  the  Tymochte  Greek  has  disappeared,  and 
two  or  three  miles  away  from  it,  somewhere  in 
the  direction  where  the  two  brothers  had  separa- 
ted thirty-four  years  ago,  a  fine  brick  house  has 
become  the  dwelling  of  the  olfiest  son  of  Elijah 
Brayton.  Up  at  SpringyiUet  some  five  or  six  miles 
farther  to  the  nortQweit,  tnd  at  no  great  distance 
from  the  trail  on  which  the  young  boy  was  borne 
off  by  the  thieving  Canadian  Indians,  lives  an- 
other brother,  Petbr,  and  one  of  the  married,  sji|i- 
ters.  Here  also  lives  the  patriardh  hlinself. 
There  are  other  sisters  who  mourned  wbe|i  their 
brother  was  lost,  and  they  too  are  marned.  A 
son  and  daughter  born  to  the  patriarq^  of  the 
family  after  the  loss  of  Matthew,  have  long  since 
died,  and  another  son,  ASA,  younger  j^et^pursiies 
the  practice  of  medicine  in  the  a^oining|oirn  ^f 


The  publication  of  the  '^Indian  Captiv^'a^^  nar- 
rative in  the  Cleveland  Jhrald  waa  the  ni^ans  of 
creating  considerable  interest  in  his  foi^nsss. 
The  story  was  extensively  copied,  a^d  sef eral 
letters  were  received  by  the  editors  of  that  paper 
from  people  jn  different  sections  of  the  <^oun^y 
who  had  iQst  children  many  yearn  agp,|t  was 


•4 


MaUhtw  Braytcn, 


i '. 


[. 


Buppofled  by  means  of  Indians.  None  of  these 
letters  afforded  any  olue  by  which  the  Indian 
Captive  oould  trace  out  his  family. 

A  weekly  paper  containing  the  story,  copied 
from  the  Cleveland  herald,  was  sent  by  a  fnend 
to  the  Brattonb,  and  this  first  save  them  an  idea 
that  there  might  be  a  possibility  of  recovering 
the  missins  member  of  the  family.  On  the  26th 
of  September,  one  month  after  the  first  publica- 
tion of  the  narrative,  Dr.  Asa  Brayton  wrote 
to  the  editors  of  the  Herald,  stating  the  man- 
ner in  which  he  had  met  with  the  article,  and 
giving  some  particulars  of  the  method  in  which 
is  brother  Matthbw  had  been  lost.  About  a 
week  afterwards  a  cousin  of  the  Doctor  called  at 
the  office  of  thar.  paper,  and  made  enquiries  res- 
pecting the  Indian  Captive.  He  was  followed  in 
a  few  days  by  Mr.  Pbteb  Bbayton,  one  of  the 
brothers  of  the  missing  Matthew,  who  went  to 
Wi^nren,  C,  in  search  of  the  ^'Captive,"  but  lost 
trace  of  him  there  and  returned  mscouraged. 

The  interest  in  the  subject  did  not  abate,  and 
fmm  time  to  Hme  the  Herald  gave  some  intelli- 

gpuce  regarding  the  wanderings  of  Uie  '^Indian 
aptive.^  The  more  the  Bbattons  considered 
the  matter  the  stronger  was  their  desire  to  satis- 
tt  l^mselves,  and  on  the  tenth  of  November 
yhtOiiiM  Bbatton,  the  eldest  brother,  who  had 
accompanied  Matthew  on  the  morning  of  the 
day  when  the  latter  was  lost,  set  out  with  the 
determination  of  not  returning  until  he  could  sat- 
isfy himself  as  to  whether  the  ^'Indian  Captive^' 
was^i^al  with  his  lost  brother,  or  not. 


Th$  Indian  CkypHve. 


e5 


PreviouB  to  setting  out,  Wiluam  was  charged 
by  his  father  to  examine  the  man  for  two  marks 
by  which  his  identity  could  probably  be  estab- 
lished. One  was  a  scar  on  the  top  of  the  head, 
caused  by  a  razor  cut  which  the  father  had  made 
in  lancing  a  boil,  and  the  other  was  a  scar  on 
the  great  toe  of  the  right  foot,  resulting  from  the 
out  of  an  axe. 

William  Bbatton  came  to  Olereland  and 
learned  that  the  person  of  whom  he  was  in 
search  had  been  keard  of  m  Northern  Pennsyl- 
vania, and  was  directed  where  to  go.  At  the 
place  pointed  out  Yi  stru^^k  the  trail  of  the  ''Cap- 
tive," and  traced  him  to  Sugar  '^rove.  Here  he 
learned  that  the  man  had  en  ^fjed  the  Stute  line 
into  New  York.  The  curr^e  was  toe  near  at  an 
end  to  allow  any  delay,  so  Mr.  Bbatton  took 
along  a  doctor  as  witness  of  the  interview,  and 
set  out  for  the  house  of  Mr.  Smith,  where  it  was 
said  that  the  ''Captive"  had  gone. 

It  was  seven  o'clock  in  the  evening  when  the 
two  arrived  at  the  house,  and  the  daylight  was 
fast  fading  into  darkness.  They  knocked  at  the 
dt>or,  and,  in  response  to  an  invitation  from  with- 
in, entered  tb?  house.  A  man,  with  his  bools 
off,  was  drying  m  feet  at  the  fire.  Mr.  BBAtiraar 
stepped  forward  eagerly  and  enquired  where  tile 
^'folks''  weie,  and  was  told  they  were  out  doing 
some  wc/k  in  the  yard.  Mr.  Bratton  said  he 
wanted  them  called  in,  and  wished  a  light  struck  ^ 
at  once,  following  up  the  request  with  the  ques* 
tion  whether  the  man  to  whom  he  spoke  was  the 
^^Indian  Captive."    On  being  told  in  the  affirma- 


-^ 


1 


I 


* 


■\^ 


v 


■■■  :, 


'■  i'- 


jtitre  he  be^ijoe  greaitly  asitfi^^  ^^^  prop^eded 
•i  oncp  to  gpt  a  light,  ^^le  *'Captiye^'  hastily 
drew  op  his  bpotp,  JjiipUed  his  dog  to  his  belt, 
aad  drew  back  with  sospicion  from  the  strangers. 
4jb  soon  as  the  li^ht  was  obtained  l^r.  Bbayton 
:ba^  the  ^'Captive'*  bare  his  head,  and  then  j 
both  he  and  his  cpi^panion  examined  the  spot 
where  his  father  had  told  them  to  search  for  the 
scar.  The  emotion  of  William  Brayton  may 
be  imagined  when  the  scar  was  plainly  revealed 
to  bis  eyes,  unmistakeable  in  its  character,  and 
situated  precisely  where  he  had  been  told  to  look 
for  it.  in  an  agitated  voice  he  bade  the  man 
take  the  boot  from  his  right  fjot,  ^luch  was  don^, 
and  there  too  was  a  scar  visible,  just  where  it  ^ 
had  been  described  to  exist. 

The  emotions  of  William  Bbayton  may  be 
iiqagined,  but  cannot  be  portrayed.  The  broth- 
er for  whose  loss  he  had  always  reproached, him- 
self was  at  length  fouiid  through  his  means,  and 
the  sorrows  of  thirty -four  years  were  at  an  end. 
IPor  some  minutes  he  paced  up  and  down  the 
kpom,  his  whoiie  frame  conviilsed  with  agitation. 
||%ien  he  tiirned  to  the  cavis^  of  all  thb  emotion^ 
pho  sat  perfectly  astonished  at  the  proPeedin^, 
and  the  ''Indian  OaDtive''  was  declared  to  be  the 

IqI^^  IpSt  j^ATTHBW^BAl^^ 

:^|^erwas  at  once  sent  home,  containing  the 
^^imffB  pf  the  discovery,  and,  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible j  the  re-united  br<^hers  set  out  in  the  same 
direction. 

At  every  station  on  the  road  home,  crowds 
^aiheredy  ai^d  at  Oarey^  where  they  were  ex- 


,%.■ 


The  IMuin  Oc^^Hve. 


tl 


pedM  to  stop,  Iiundr^ds  were  collected.  Old 
ihen  who  had  searched  for  the'  lost  boy-^aged 
mothers  who  had  held  him  in  their  arms — ^yotttig 
men  who  had  heard  the  8t6rj  narrated  by  their 
parents.  But  the  couple  stopped  five  miles  north 
of  Carey,  at  Adrian  Station,  and  ai  once  started 
for  William  Beatton*s  house. 

Here  the  family  were  gathered.  The  old  man, 
seventy-three  ^ears  of  age,  but  still  hale  and 
vigorous — the  brothers  and  the  sisters.  When  the 
oldest  brother  enteried  with  his  charge  the  intense 
feeling  that  prevailed  the  hearts  of  all  in  the 
room  can  scarcely  be  imagined— cannot  be  de- 
scribed. The  aged  father  arose,  placed  his  trem- 
bling hand  on  the  head  of  the  stranger,  and 
searched  for  the  scar,  which  he  could  scarcely 
distinguish  through  the  mist  that  filled  his  eyes. 
Then  lie  knelt  to  examine  the  foot.  For  a  mo- 
ment every  breath  was  hushed,  and  the  hearts  of 
the  other  relatives  almost  ceased  to  beat.  Then 
the  old  manv  tottered  to  his  feet,  and  with  a  gash. 
of  tears^—the  stream  of  affection  that  had  been 
.Jjw^t wJSptr i^^  third  of  a  century—- fell  on  the 
neck  ofhis  son^-MATTHBw  BisAtTOif!  It  is 
useless  to  Atttempt  a  description  of  the  scene 
that  followed.  The  father  that  had  so  long  se- 
cretly mourned  for  his  child-^the  household  pet; 
the  brother  who  never  forgot  that  it  was  from  his 
company  that  the  little  bo  v  had  passed  away  to 
a  mysterious  fat  ;  the  other  brother  who  had 
been  his  playmate ;  the  sisters  who  had  fondled, 
their  little  brother  in  infancy — all  were  gathered 
ta  share  m  that  happy  meeting.    There  was  one 


;"4 


4 


68        MaUhew  BrayUm,  th«  Indian  Captive, 

absent  whose  presenoe  was  needed  to  make  the 
cup  of  joy  full  to  overflowing,  but  hor  motherly 
heart  might  perhaps  even  then  be  rejoicing  in 
heaven  for  the  happiness  on  earth. 

The  new8  of  the  return  spread  like  Mnldfire. 
The  return  was  on  Thursday  the  17th  of  Novem- 
ber. For  dayB  afterwards  the  house  was  besieg- 
ed by  anxious  people  eager  to  see  the  '^boy''  so 
long  lost,  and  so  strangely  found.  Old  men  who 
had  shared  with  zeal  in  that  weary  and  hopeless 
search  thirtv-four  years  ago,  came  up,  and  all  who 
had  known  him  as  a  little  boy,  acknowledged  the 
identity. 

At  present  Matthew  Bbayton,  the  hero  of 
these  strange  adventures,  is  residing  with  his  fath- 
er and  brothers,  and  has  become  somewhat  recon- 
ciled to  dvilized  life.  He  has  abandoned  Ms  de- 
sign of  returning  to  the  Indians,  and  is  endeavor- 
ing to  fit  himself  for  the  different  lot  now  assign- 
ecThim.  He  has  attended  school  as  frequently 
as  the  state  of  his  i^yes  permitted,  and  can  now 
read  a  little,  as  well  as  converse  very  readily  in 
the  English  language.  After  his  thirty -four 
years  of  wanderings  and  hajNteril^Sitvirw*!^^ 
hoped  that  he  will  now  be  content  to  remain 
&siM>i]|jghis  family  and  partOike  to  .^b^  Ml  Qf  ^^ 
Jbl»^i^8  of  civiluiation.  'T:l 


.*  •/«•    "<>^  i><^ 


1 


five. 

oake  the 
notherly 
ticing  in 

wildfire. 
'  Novem- 
8  besieg- 
*boy"  so 
men  who 
hopeless 
d  all  who 
dged  the 

e  hero  of 
tihisfath- 
lat  recon- 
ed  his  de- 
andeavor- 
w  assign- 
requently 
I  can  now 
readily  in 
lurty-four 

o  remain 
lin  (it  |he 


i       ,    A  ^  **■' 


^1,  Ji 


